The Learned One
by trallgorda
Summary: Daniel is invited to a new planet for a meeting of learning. With the rest of SG1 he goes, but is this meeting all it seems to be?
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Sirens went off, startling the personnel in the SGC compound. Everyone froze, wondering what was going on. In seconds, a recorded voice stated that there was an unauthorized traveler about to come through the gate. Guards rushed to the room, weapons drawn, and watched as the iris of the Stargate opened somehow opened itself, revealing the shimmering surface of the portal. As the light coming from the portal flickered, Colonel O'Neill, General Hammond, and the rest of SG-1 stared at the portal from the control room, wondering just what was going to come through.

"What happened the last time something unauthorized came through that thing?" Carter wondered out loud.

"Wasn't it a box of tissues?"

"That was from _your_ side, Daniel," she reminded him.

"Oh. Yeah."

"Last thing to come through was that message from Samarra. Wonder what it is this time," O'Neill muttered.

The general remained quiet, deciding not to remind them what had happened after that.

"Whatever it is, it is about to come through," Teal'c observed. "We will know soon enough."

With a final flicker, whatever was traveling through the Stargate arrived on the platform, and the shimmering portal closed. All weapons were pointed at it: a small, brown envelope.

"What is this, a post office?" O'Neill wanted to know, staring as a guard approached it and picked it up. "D'you think it's a letter bomb?"

"Too small," Carter told him.

"What is it, lieutenant?" the general asked over the intercom.

"It's for Dr. Jackson, sir," the lieutenant said, staring at the envelope he held.

Everyone in the booth turned to stare at Daniel.

The team went to the debriefing room and the lieutenant handed the letter over to Daniel after it was checked for anything lurking in the envelope.

"What could be on it?" he asked the general, a little surprised at all of the caution.

"Microbes, poison, anything," the general reminded him. "You've made lots of enemies, Daniel."

"Well, so have I, but I don't get letters," Jack complained. "How come Daniel gets the letters?"

Daniel wanted to say, "Because I can read," just to irk Jack, but he didn't quite dare. After all, he knew that Jack was only teasing him. Daniel sat down and looked the envelope over. On closer inspection, the envelope was clearly made out of some kind of handmade paper, not papyrus or vellum as he'd half expected from the color. On the back of it was his name, Daniel Jackson, written in black ink. On the front was a blob of red wax which had been meant to hold it closed, but the seal had been broken while the letter had been checked over by the lab. Holding the edges together, Daniel saw the device was nothing more than a circle.

"A Stargate?" Carter wondered, pointing at the circle.

"Don't know, but I have a feeling we'll find out."

Daniel pulled the letter out of the envelope, unfolded it, and stared at it. "This is weird. My name is in English, but this is in…I don't know what."

Everyone turned to look at him. Daniel was conversant in twenty-three languages, and it was rare that he couldn't read something.

"Is it similar to anything you know?" the general suggested hopefully.

Daniel shook his head. "Nothing. Not runes, or Russian, or hieroglyphics, cuneiform, or anything else. It's like someone gave a pen to a very smart two-year-old and let him go to town. There's reasoning behind all of this, but I can't make it out." He held up the paper so everyone could see the myriad dashes, angles, small circles, and zigzags that made up the pattern.

"Well, looks like you finally met your match," Jack joked, grinning. "A very smart two-year-old, Danny-boy."

Daniel glared at him.

"You will figure it out," Teal'c said. "I have yet to see a puzzle you could not unravel, let alone resist."

"Thanks, Teal'c," Daniel said, studying the letter. "I'm going to take this to my office, look it over. I'll see you guys later."

The rest of SG-1 exchanged glances. They knew that Daniel would allow very little else to infiltrate his life while he had that puzzle to work on. They remembered the last time something had been unsolvable: he'd worked for three days without sleep, passed out at his desk, and while he'd been asleep the rest of the team stole his notes and hid them from him so he would rest for a bit. Jack found himself grinning, remembering the part he'd played.

"_All right, this is how it's gonna be, Danny boy," Jack had said, thoroughly enjoying himself. Daniel had woken up, discovered the missing notes, and then went to find the rest of the team. He'd found them in the lounge, clearly enjoying the furious look on his face when he stalked in. "You go get cleaned up, pull on a fresh set of clothes, and we'll all go with you to the mess hall where you'll have a nice, big meal. Then, if you're a good boy and have another nap, then _maybe_ we'll give you back your notes."_

"_What is this, 'Pick on Daniel Day'?" Daniel had growled, thoroughly put out. "You guys are definitely into inflicting cruel and unusual punishment!" _

"_Well, if you don't do that, Teal'c can help you," Carter suggested. "You know, with the washing and the dressing and all the rest of it."_

_Swearing revenge (and staying out of Teal'c's reach), Daniel had complied._

"Anyone want to take bets on what we'll have to do to him to get him to take a break?" Jack asked gleefully, getting himself a cup of coffee.

"I thought we settled the most effective choice last time," Teal'c said. "Offer him my aid in doing so."

The general chuckled. "Maybe we'd better make sure to do that later tonight, just to make sure he sleeps."

The general had been joking, but everyone had a good laugh later that evening when around eleven Teal'c decided to do just what the general suggested. Sudden shouting from Daniel's quarters brought the rest of SG-1 and the general running from the lounge, and when they got to the door, they saw Daniel in bed with Teal'c standing by his bed, determined to keep him there.

"Teal'c, I _know_ someone put you up to this, so I don't blame you," Daniel said from where he lay. "I have a pretty good idea who it was, too!" He paused to glare at his teammates, one of whom snickered. "But I am not tired, I want to finish deciphering that message, and I can't do that in bed!"

"Well, as long as you're in bed, you might as well sleep," Carter told him, trying very hard not to laugh.

"Yeah, Teal'c's got you all nice and tucked in," Jack said, smiling. "Nice and cozy and comfy, isn't it? Got your teddy bear?"

If looks were capable of killing someone, then Jack O'Neill would have been a smoking spot on the floor. Daniel went to get out of bed, but Teal'c's hand on his shoulder restrained him and made sure he stayed just where he was.

"I am going to get you guys back for this," Daniel promised.

"Teal'c did it all on his own," the general said, exonerating SG-1 from Daniel's wrath. "They had nothing to do with it, and we didn't even know Teal'c was coming here. Really, Daniel."

Daniel looked at Teal'c, who nodded. Daniel sank back into his pillows, looking shocked.

"I don't know whether to feel touched or worried," Daniel said after a moment of reflection. "Thank you, Teal'c, for your concern, but I hope you won't be making a habit out of this."

Teal'c assured him that it would only happen when he, Daniel, overworked. Daniel did not find that reassuring considering how often he worked late or even to the next day.

Space

Four days later, Daniel rushed into the general's office where the rest of SG-1 were having a meeting.

"Let me guess," the general said, holding up a hand to forestall him. "You've figured out that message you got."

"How did you know that?" Daniel asked, surprised.

"Because only solving a puzzle gives you that kind of manic glint in your eye," Jack opined, leaning back in his chair. "What's it say?"

Daniel took a spare chair and unfolded the letter. "Well, it was really simple once I cracked the code."

"Isn't it always?" Jack joked.

Daniel ignored him. "You see, it was a letter-number code based on the Fibonacci sequence. Each little grouping of symbols represented a number, and once the numbers were understood, I thought that we'd been sent a bunch of coordinates. Well, each number is set off by a space to make it clear that each group of digits was meant to be read together, and some of those coordinates were six digits long. That didn't make sense. Whoever sent this meant us to figure it out, and it didn't make sense as coordinates. Then, I noticed that the digit for eight was repeated a lot, and I wondered if it represented a letter of some kind. It didn't make sense in any of the extraterrestrial languages, but it did make sense in English! E is the most commonly used letter in the English language, and I tried putting E in every time I saw an eight, and after that it was a matter of filling in letters.

"Like a crossword puzzle," Jack said, sipping his coffee.

"What does it say?" Teal'c asked.

" 'The learned ones would be greatly honored if you were to come to our great institution for a meeting of learning. At your convenience, learned one," Daniel read off of a piece of paper he held in his hand.

"And?" the general said.

"Well, it's signed 'The Learned Ones,' and it gives a Stargate address, which is one we haven't seen before," Daniel told him, folding the paper up and placing it on the desk. "That's all."

"And it was addressed to you," General Hammond said, taking it and reading the message for himself. "What do you think it means?"

"Obviously it is an invitation," Teal'c said calmly. "And it was addressed to Daniel Jackson. So, someone must be awaiting his arrival."

"Yes, but do we go?" Carter asked.

"We?" O'Neill echoed, putting down his coffee. "We? Last I knew, that invitation was only open to Daniel since it was his name on the envelope, and a 'meeting of learning' doesn't sound very inviting to me."

"I wouldn't want to go by myself," Daniel protested. "I have no idea if this is just a friendly invitation or a trap, and besides, if it's a new world, Colonel, wouldn't you want to explore it?"

"I'm getting a vision of dusty libraries and laboratories," Jack muttered. "What's to explore?"

"The choice of whether SG-1 goes or not depends on Dr. Jackson's choice of accepting or refusing the invitation," the general said, earning a startled glance from the colonel. "What do you say, Daniel?"

Daniel grinned and Jack groaned. In seconds, the bespectacled professor flew out the door, calling to the rest of the team, "Just let me get packed!"

Space

SG-1 was waiting patiently for Daniel by the Stargate an hour later, and he still had not showed up.

"If he's not here in the next five minutes, I'm calling the mission off," Colonel O'Neill growled.

"He is packing," Teal'c reminded him.

"Packing _what_?" Jack wanted to know. "That miniature Library of Congress he keeps in his room? If he thinks we're going to help him lug all those books, he's got another think coming. I've _seen_ how many he has, and I'm _not _going to be a pack mule on this mission. We're gonna go, he'll talk to these people, and then we're coming back, period. Remember when he got a gift from that one king we helped out? Whatever he wished? What did he choose? A mammoth book that contained an entire history of that planet! I had to help him carry it, and my back was killing me for weeks afterward."

Teal'c smiled warmly. "Yet you helped him carry it," he pointed out. "It gives him great joy, and he is still reading it."

"A book that Daniel Jackson isn't able to read in one sitting," Jack muttered, pacing. "I was beginning to think that was an impossibility."

Daniel arrived then, carrying his pack. Everyone was staring at him.

"What, no dolly to help you carry your books? No truck?" Jack wanted to know.

"I only needed ten, but I was having a hard time choosing," Daniel answered, pulling on his jacket. "Sorry about that."

"What ten did you choose?" Carter asked, interested.

"Well, I wanted ones that would represent all that humankind has accomplished over the years, so I chose a book on mathematics, another on the sciences and one on technology, an anthropology and global issues book, one on ancient myths, one on religion, one on literature, one on arts, one on music, and the write-ups I've been doing of our journeys."

All of them were still staring.

"Well, I wanted to be thorough in giving them the complete spectrum of human accomplishments," Daniel told them, looking eager.

"How about you let them ask the questions instead of volunteering information?" Jack suggested dryly. "After all, you said yourself that you weren't sure if this were a genuine invitation or a trap of some kind. What if they're a possible enemy? Do you think it would be wise to tell them all about us?"

"Well, just in case," Daniel said. "I thought it would be better if I were prepared."

"Sure," Jack said, pulling on his pack. "Well, let's get this show going."

He gave a signal to the control booth, the general waved and gave them a thumbs-up for good luck, and the Stargate was started. Once it was open, the team headed through, hoping that whatever would happen next would be good.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Once on the other side of the Stargate, the colonel looked around, pivoting on one foot, taking in all that was to be seen. They were in a largely deciduous forest, and the scent of pine trees was everywhere. Fallen pine needles underfoot muffled their steps, and the entire forest was silent.

"I saw a scene just like this in a horror movie," O'Neill said, craning his neck to see the top of the nearest tree. "This is the scene just before the deranged killer jumps out and slaughters everyone."

"Way to be optimistic," Sam muttered, looking around just as nervously.

"It's so quiet," Daniel said, once the gate had closed. "It's like there's nothing alive in this place but us and the trees. Almost as if they're listening to us."

"I just know that if I see one of those trees move, we're leaving," Jack said. "Do you see anything to tell us where your letter writers are?"

Daniel shook his head. "Not really. Just trees and more trees."

"They could not have known we were coming unless they have some way of watching the Stargate," Teal'c told them. "If that is the case, then we will meet someone soon enough. If it is not, then we will find someone eventually."

"I'd prefer it to be sooner rather than later," O'Neill muttered.

"I agree with you there," Carter said, still looking around nervously. "The sooner we get out of these woods, the better I'll feel. It's too quiet for me. Not natural."

Rustling nearby startled everyone. Everyone brought up a gun (except Teal'c, who had his usual weapon and Daniel, who really didn't use one) and pointed it at the source of the noise.

"Oh, please don't shoot!" someone cried from behind a bush. "Let me come out. They sent me to see if someone had arrived."

At that, an older man stepped into view and smiled at all of them. "I am Andros, and I was sent to see if the Learned One, Daniel Jackson, had come. I take it you are he?" He bowed then to O'Neill.

"Ah, not me," O'Neill said, waving towards Daniel. "Him. The guy with the vague expression."

The man turned and bowed at Daniel, and Daniel bowed back. "Welcome, Learned One Daniel Jackson," Andros said reverently. "It is an honor to have you here. I am Andros, and I have been trusted to lead you to the University."

"Pleasure to be here, Andros," Daniel said, trying for equanimity. "Why do you call me 'Learned One?'"

Andros looked up, startled. "Isn't that what you are?" he asked. "Learned in many things? Knowledgeable of countless subjects? Speaker of many languages and reader of many words? Understander of numerous conundrums?"

O'Neill smirked. "That would be our Daniel. One big brain."

Daniel decided to ignore that remark. "So 'Learned One' is a title denoting someone of learning?"

"Exactly," Andros said, smiling and at ease once more. "May I ask who your companions are?"

"Ah, this is the rest of the team of SG-1, and together we are explorers," Daniel told him. "This is Colonel O'Neill, Teal'c, and Major Carter."

"An honor to meet your associates," Andros said, bowing again. "Well, you must not wish to spend the night here, so if you will follow me, I will lead you to the University."

With that, he turned and led them the way he had come.

As they followed Andros, Major Carter had time to study their guide. He looked to be in about his mid-forties, human, very eager to be of help, and she could see several ink stains on his right hand. Daniel often walked around with similar stains on his hand as well from writing things and having pens leak all over his fingers. That was one thing that identified Daniel (and now, apparently Andros) as a scholar.

"So, where are we going exactly?" Jack wanted to know, hurrying his steps to catch up to Andros. "A university?"

"Yes, yes," Andros assured him happily. Colonel O'Neill found himself wondering just what the guy had in the mornings to make him so chipper.

"Could you describe the university?" Teal'c asked politely, guessing what Colonel O'Neill had originally wanted.

"Well, it is a very large place," Andros said, modeling a large space with his hands. "Every branch of study has its own building within the compound, and each branch of study has several different specialties within it. Each specialty has five Learned Ones that serve as a council for that specialty, and each council selects one of their number to be part of the council for each branch of study. _That_ council serves as _the_ Council for the University. They are the ones who invited you, Learned One Daniel Jackson."

Daniel blinked. "How many branches of study does your university have?"

"Oh, a great many!" Andros said, smiling as he led them down an incline and up another side. "If you can think of a branch of study, then we have it!"

"Art?" Major Carter asked. "Science? Culture? History?"

"Yes, and many more besides," Andros told them. "Many, many, many more!"

"So, why did the Council invite me here?" Daniel asked, perplexed. "It seems that since you have so many branches of study, you would have all the 'Learned Ones' you would need to answer any question."

"Ah, but you see, we don't! Civilizations all over are learning more all the time, and new branches of study come into being almost every year! We are always adding onto the University!"

That time the capital letter in "University" was audible.

"Is there only one University here?" Teal'c asked.

"The one, only, and best!" Andros said, still smiling his happy little smile. "We have the most Learned Ones, the most branches of study, the most specializations, the most learning facilities, the largest library, and the brightest students, for what is a University without learners?"

"A big empty building, most likely," Colonel O'Neill muttered, a little put off by Andros' enthusiasm. He enjoyed learning new things, but he didn't share the overwhelming urge that drove Daniel and apparently Andros.

Andros stopped dead on the path and stared at Colonel O'Neill. "What an image," he said, looking thoughtful. "An empty University! What a thought! Colonel O'Neill, are you by any chance a Learned One in philosophy?"

The thought of Jack O'Neill as a philosopher nearly made Daniel and Major Carter burst out laughing, but they politely restrained themselves.

"No," the colonel said as politely as he could. "I'm not. Why do you ask?"

"Well, it was the thought of an empty University that made me ask," Andros said, beginning to walk again. "I wondered if you were part of the philosophical school that deals only in imponderables and impossibilities."

"So, there's no possibility of the University ever being empty?" Daniel asked.

Andros laughed. "Of course not! Unless, of course, you were thinking in abstracts. Then of course there is possibility, but it would cease to exist in reality."

"How do you mean?" Teal'c asked, sensing O'Neill's shortening patience.

"Well, a University is more than buildings and books and facilities. Essentially it is the people who inhabit it that make it!" Andros said, wagging a finger as if to illustrate something very apparent.

"Oh, I see," Daniel said. "But what about this—no one is in the University, but people outside it know that it's there. Would it cease to exist then? Has that question been addressed?"

Andros laughed and began to chatter away. "Of course, but no one can ever decide on it!"

"If they start talking about falling trees in empty forests and the sound of one hand clapping, remind me to do a couple of mercy killings," the colonel whispered to Major Carter. "I can't believe that Daniel actually finds this stuff _fun_."

"Daniel cannot understand your penchant for fishing," Teal'c pointed out.

"So?"

"So we all have our own interests that appeal to us," the major finished. "Why does philosophy bother you so much?"

"I'm practical. All that stuff about what-ifs and therefores and so on just doesn't make sense to me. I mean, why waste time thinking about things when doing something about them is more effective in the long run?"

Neither Teal'c nor Major Carter wished to point out to Colonel O'Neill that he had just posited a philosophical question. To change the mood, Major Carter asked Andros what he did at the University. Was he a Learned One himself?

"I?" Andros said in shock. "Well, thank you very much for the compliment, Major Carter! No, I am not a Learned One. Nowhere close to it, I'm afraid!"

"Well, what do you do, then?" Daniel asked.

"I am merely an under-instructor. I teach the newest students and I teach the most general subjects, and I assist any Learned One that should need me. It would take me many more years of study in my chosen field before I can become a Learned One, and the branch Learned Ones and the University Council would have to approve me before I could join their ranks."

"But you call Daniel Jackson a Learned One?" Teal'c asked, puzzled. "He has not studied at your University."

"Well, for some, the honor goes without saying," Andros explained.

Teal'c nodded, accepting that explanation.

"It really is a great honor that you have come, Learned One," Andros said, smiling at Daniel. "Oh, the Council will be delighted!"

"So why wasn't someone from this Council here to meet us?" O'Neill wanted to know. "Why did they send you?"

"Well, I am extremely knowledgeable about the University itself, and the Council felt it would be best for you to have someone on hand to answer your questions right away," Andros said reassuringly. "As I have seen, you have many."

"And getting more every moment," Daniel said. "Do you have any idea why the Council invited me here?"

"Very little," Andros admitted. "I was not part of the meeting when they discussed you since under-teachers take part in Council meetings only rarely and only by invitation."

"Well, what did they tell you about Daniel?" Major Carter asked.

"They told me that he was a very great Learned One, and that they were going to invite him to the University for a meeting of learning," Andros answered. "That was all."

That was something that all of SG-1 wanted to know: why Daniel had been invited to this place.

"So, what is a meeting of learning exactly?" Daniel asked, persisting.

"Oh, they are wonderful affairs!" Andros said, smiling again. "There is a great deal of discussion about countless subjects, and the Learned Ones share their findings with one another, and the students compete to be chosen to attend. Only those with the best marks are allowed, you know."

"Oh," Daniel said, a little surprised. "It sounds like the symposiums I used to attend while I was teaching."

That launched Andros into a spate of questioning about the symposiums that kept him and Daniel occupied until they reached the crest of a hill and saw the University. As Andros had said, it was very big, but they hadn't been prepared for _how_ big. It was so large that it stretched almost to the horizon.

"Woah," O'Neill said, staring at it. "You weren't kidding about the size of this thing, were you?"

"Do you see that large building with the dome?" Andros asked, pointing. "That is where the Council meets. Come along." He led the way down the hill and to a vehicle of some sort that waited at the bottom. Apparently, there was no way through the woods for a vehicle, so that was why they'd had to hike. Once they were seated, Andros took the driver's seat and Daniel took the front passenger seat at his insistence.

Everyone received a shock when Andros leaned back in his seat and said, "Home." The vehicle started on its own and began to move.

"There's no need to steer?" Major Carter gasped, staring at the back of Andros' head in surprise.

"None at all," he assured them. "The vehicle knows what to do. I just have to tell it where I want to go and it will take us."

"What if something gets in its way?" O'Neill asked.

"Well, it scans ahead for obstacles and compensates accordingly," Andros explained.

Carter immediately phrased a question that no one except Daniel and apparently Andros understood.

"I hate it when she does that," O'Neill muttered.

"Yes, that's exactly it," Andros said, turning in his seat to regard Carter with astonishment. "You have studied?"

"You might call Sam a Learned One," Daniel said, winking at his teammate. "She's a scientist, and she knows more things than I do."

"Indeed?" Andros said. "Ah, we call women Wise Ones. They can never be Learned Ones."

"What's the difference?" Carter asked.

"Well, a woman is a Wise one and a man is a Learned One," Andros said as if that explained everything.

"Ooooo-kay," drawled O'Neill. "How long before we get to the University?"

"Oh, not long at all," Andros told them, smiling pleasantly. "We'll be there soon and you'll meet the Council and everything will be wonderful!"

SG1 exchanged looks with one another but said nothing. They were all tacitly agreeing to wait and see what would happen.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

The vehicle stopped somewhere near the center of the University's immense campus. As they'd ridden through the place they'd seen countless people wearing outfits identical to Andros', and they realized that it was a uniform of some kind. It consisted of long pants, a long sleeved-shirt, and a floor length vest that tied in the front with a sash, and each outfit was the same charcoal gray.

"Ah, here we are," Andros said, smiling as he got out of the vehicle. "This building here is where our guest quarters are, and they are quite comfortable. Each guest suite consists of a bedroom and sitting area, a study, and a private lavatory, and each floor has a common area for guests to socialize."

"Ah," Daniel said, getting out of the vehicle as well and picking up his pack. "So, when do we meet the Council?"

Andros checked what had to be a central clock tower, but it wasn't a clock as SG-1 recognized one. "I'd say in about one and a half liran."

"Liran?" Carter said, wondering if that were comparable to hours in some way.

Andros appeared to be making calculations in his head. "I think that would be comparable to fifty-four hundred of your most basic time increment," he said, still smiling.

"So, that would be one and a half hours," Daniel said. "Hmm. Seems like your day's just about identical to ours. You have twenty-four liran in a day, right?"

"Oh, yes!" Andros said, his smile widening. "You truly are a Learned One! Come, I'll escort you to your quarters so you can rest and refresh yourselves after your journey."

Escort them he did. He led them to the top floor ("Where the view of the University is best," he said) and showed them their assigned quarters. As they entered the quarters reserved for Daniel, they saw a young man leap to his feet and bow deeply.

"And this is Nevin, one of our brightest students," Andros said, sounding inordinately proud. "He has asked for the honor of serving you, Learned One."

"Really?" Daniel said, surprised. "Well, that's very…ah, nice of you."

"It would be my honor, Learned One," Nevin said, rising from his bow. "May I get you anything? Refreshments?"

Daniel nodded, thanked him, and turned to Andros once the young man was gone. "He's one of your brightest students but he's working as a servant?" he asked, not understanding.

"Oh, yes," Andros said, still smiling. Jack found himself wondering again just what did that to the guy. Why was he so darn happy all the time?

"Why?" Teal'c asked.

"It is an honor," Andros told him. "It is a very high honor, and it will be an accomplishment he will be able to boast of in later years."

"Kind of like doing something because it'll look good on your resume," Jack said, flopping into a chair. "I get it."

So did Daniel. "I see."

"Well, if Nevin is fetching you refreshments, then you certainly don't need me," Andros said. "Since it's best to be a little early, I'll be back in a liran's time to escort you to the Council. You'll have plenty of time to get your bearings before you meet them, so I'll wish you all a pleasant time until I see you again." With that, their guide bowed and backed out the door.

"Well, this is all very interesting," Carter said, sinking down onto a couch. "What do you think?"

"We still do not know why this Council has invited Daniel Jackson here," Teal'c said, taking a seat as well. "We know that it is for a meeting of learning, but why Daniel Jackson?"

"Yeah, I'm getting a feeling that we haven't been told everything," Jack said, flopping his legs over an arm of the easy chair he was occupying. "Any thoughts, Daniel?"

Daniel shrugged. "I have no idea, to tell the truth. I wish I knew just why they wanted me to come to this meeting, though. Was it because of the degrees I hold, or something else? Could they have heard of me somewhere?"

"I don't know," Carter said. "They have the Stargate, but do they use it? Most people we meet don't, but who's to say that these people haven't? Perhaps they've traveled somewhere we've been and heard about you there."

"I don't think that's possible," Jack said, shaking his head. "You remember how that place was all overgrown and dingy? If they've been using it, it would be cleaned up and tidy."

"Then how did they send us the letter and know where to meet us?" Carter countered.

"That's right," Daniel said. "Perhaps it's only been a recent discovery?"

"That sounds plausible," Teal'c agreed. "Just as the Stargate on Tau'ri has been a recent discovery."

"Okay, so they tinker," Jack said, sounding as if his patience was running out just a little bit. "I say we lay off the speculation until we've talked to this council."

Nevin came back in then, carrying a tray covered with bite-size portions of food, a pitcher of drink, and four glasses. They had to forestall their conversation for later, but then, as they were sipping at what was the best fruit juice they'd ever had, they realized they had to get ready for their meeting with the Council, and it might be construed as an insult if they went in their dusty fatigues.

"What should we wear to our meeting with the Council, Nevin?" Daniel asked, determined to get it "right" in the way of wardrobe.

"Oh, your best clothing, if possible," Nevin told him. "If you've brought nothing with you, then there are several things to choose from in your wardrobe. I've taken the liberty of filling the wardrobes in your associates' rooms as well."

"Well, that's very nice of you," Sam said, oddly touched. "Are you certain that the things you brought will fit us?"

"Oh, yes," Nevin assured her. "They are all made to fit approximately anyone, and sashes and belts make an approximate fit into a better one. You'll see."

Once they'd finished their snack, they headed to their own rooms to wash up and change. Daniel unearthed his best suit of clothes from his pack and regarded their wrinkles and creases ruefully. "Well, I won't be able to wear this," he muttered, tucking it away again and turning to his wardrobe. "Some day someone will have to invent a piece of luggage that won't wrinkle what you pack."

In the wardrobe, Daniel found close to a dozen suits of clothing, and they were similar to Andros' outfit. The good thing about them, though, was that they were all in different colors and had various trims and embroideries on them, making them just a little fancier and distinguished. There were even sets of undergarments, socks, and boots. Daniel selected an outfit and but when he headed into the bathroom to take a shower he got a surprise. There was no shower, but there was a tub, so after a quick wash he felt ready. He dressed and headed back into his bedroom for shoes and to see if his friends were ready.

"Woah," Jack said from a chair. "Danny-boy, you clean up nice!"

Daniel mock-glared at him. "So do you, Jack," he said, taking in Jack's black and gold-trimmed ensemble. "Are Teal'c and Sam ready?"

"Sam said to give her five more minutes, and Teal'c said he was just finishing up."

"Okay," Daniel said, pulling on a matching set of boots and pulling the straps tight before beginning to rummage through his pack. "What did I do with my comb?"

"There's one on that table there," Jack said, pointing to a bedside table. "You're not getting nervous, are you?"

"Just a bit," he admitted. "I mean, we don't know why they invited us here. What if it's something that isn't good?"

"I already think it's nothing good," Jack said, grinning. "A meeting of brains."

"Funny," Carter said, coming into Daniel's room. "Very funny. _I_ think it will be fascinating."

Both men stared at her. She wore an outfit similar to Daniel's, but instead of trousers she had on a skirt. Small splits on the sides allowed her decorated boots to be seen, and an embroidery motif of silver leaves made her outfit all the more remarkable.

"Wow," Daniel said, trying very hard to stop staring. "Carter, you look…"

"Just what I was thinking," Jack said, sitting up in his chair.

Teal'c came in then, wearing burgundy, shortly followed by Andros, who was wearing a fancier (but still gray) uniform.

"Ah, wonderful, you're all ready!" he said, admiring all of them. "You look incredible, I must say! Nevin has excellent taste!"

"I'd say he has a fashion genius," Carter said, moving in a circle, enjoying the swing of her skirt.

"Well, since you're all ready, come with me," Andros said brightly. "Don't worry, Learned One," he told Daniel, who was trying to gather a portfolio for the Council to see. "You won't need to bring anything. This meeting is just to meet you and introduce themselves. You'll see."

Daniel did not say that that made him feel any better.

Space

Daniel and the rest of SG-1 got quite a shock when they were shown into the Coucil Room in the large domed building they'd seen. There were enough Councilmembers to fill the UN twice over! Just how many Learned Ones were there?

Andros led them to the center of the floor and bowed to the Learned One who was obviously the leader of the group. He sat in a chair that was just a little fancier, a little more ornate, and a little more impressive. Clearly, it said, "Power."

"Learned One, I present to you the Learned One Daniel Jackson and his associates and companions: the Warrior Teal'c, the Warrior Jack O'Neill, and the Wise One Sam Carter," Andros said, using his hand to indicate who was who. Everyone in SG-1 realized that the entire room had their gazes riveted on Daniel.

The Learned One that Andros had addressed bowed from his seat as Daniel bowed in reply. "You are welcome here, Learned One Daniel Jackson. I am Martiis," the old man said. He turned and addressed the man sitting to his right. "I told you the code was not too complicated to break. He is here because he has read the invitation."

"Then you're the one who sent me that letter?" Daniel asked, pulling it from his pocket.

Martiis gave him a rheumy smile and nodded. "I did. Letters and numbers are a hobby of mine, so I designed the message for you."

"Why?" Daniel asked, perplexed. "Wouldn't it have been easier just to write it in English?"

"I had to devise some test to make certain that you were as learned as we'd heard," the Learned One told him. "You see, Daniel Jackson, we try to at least have as many Learned Ones visit our University as we can, but sometimes they are dilettantes and charlatans. We try to meet them first before inviting them, but sometimes meeting them is not always possible. By giving you a puzzle to unravel, you were proving your ability."

"How _did_ you hear about Daniel?" Jack wanted to know. "It's not as if he's published many books outside of Earth."

"An exploratory team of ours found your team on a planet far from here. They found your behavior fascinating since it was so similar to ours, but as Daniel Jackson was working, they realized that he was a Learned One, and they told us about it," Martiis said. "Since then, we have endeavored to learn as much about you as we could, and we decided to invite Daniel Jackson here for a meeting of learning."

"We-ell, that explains that," Jack said quietly. "Wonder which planet?"

"We have no way of knowing, really," Sam said, just as surprised as her teammates. She turned her attention to Martiis. "How did your exploratory team_ get_ to that planet? A ship?"

Martiis smiled. "Of course not, that would have taken years we didn't wish to waste! We went through the portal, the same way you arrived here."

"You know how to work the gate?" Jack said, sounding as if he weren't surprised at all. If they were able to use it to send a message to Daniel, then they would have been able to use it to travel. Martiis' nod confirmed it.

"This is wonderful," Daniel said. "Since we are both able to use the gate, then our two societies can begin exchanging information, exchange knowledge, maybe even set up some kind of foreign study program..."

The rest of SG-1 let him ruminate for a few minutes. They knew that he wouldn't stop thinking until he'd finished that particular line of thought.

"We were hoping for the same," Martiis said, sounding for all the world like an indulgent uncle. "Learned One Daniel Jackson, we are pleased that you have come. All of the Council holds the opinion that you will help us expand the University, and that such expansion will be most beneficial. We bid you welcome."

Martiis rose and bowed, and as one the rest of the Council did the same. Daniel and the rest of the team bowed back, and Martiis invited them all to supper with him in his quarters that evening. On behalf of the team Daniel accepted, and all of them were thinking about this University and its leader. What would they learn at dinner?


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

At dinner they learned that "dinner" was a euphemism for "stuff the guests silly." As soon as they arrived (and even before Martiis appeared) a great number of appetizers were offered by servants. There were little pastries stuffed with meat or nuts, vegetable spreads on toasted bread, vegetable slices and dipping sauce, and miniature cups holding mouthfuls of various soups. Martiis appeared after twenty minutes and as many offers of appetizers by the servants (who, Daniel saw, were all students) and together SG-1 and Martiis sat down at the table for the first course. Conversation consisted mostly of Daniel's work and Daniel's life since Martiis was the one who asked the most questions, but Daniel did manage to switch the topic to what Martiis did and what the Meeting of Learning would be like. All through the bread, soup, salad, fish, entree, fruit, cheese, and dessert Daniel and Martiis kept one another at a run with questions and answers and discussion. Sam managed to contribute quite a bit as a Wise One, and Teal'c managed a few quiet observations, but Jack was completely out of his element. Fishing, sports, and the SGC he knew, but rocks, languages, and science he did not.

The final course was a hot beverage, and they took that in the sitting room, leaning back in their chairs and relaxing to let their meals digest. Martiis was pouring their drinks for them and offering a shot of what seemed to be alcohol for their drinks, but Daniel felt he should refuse, as did the rest of SG-1. Teal'c, of course, had had water with his meal, but he, Jack, and Sam had had a bit of wine with each course, and he didn't want to get too muddle-headed while he was off-world. That was never good.

"So, when does the Meeting of Learning begin?" Daniel asked, still intrigued. "Do the Learned Ones give prepared presentations of their work?"

"Some do, if they are featured," Martiis explained, handing out what seemed to be hot chocolate with a great deal of cinnamon in it. "Which, you will be, Learned One Jackson. Are there any special materials you will need to prepare?"

Daniel thought about this, wishing he'd been told a little sooner. "Well, I have samples of my work and my latest research, so all I really need is a way to display them. How long will I have to get ready?"

"Three days," Martiis said happily, looking quite bleary. The poor old guy had had too much to drink, Daniel could tell that already. "We wanted to give you some time to prepare so we invited you a good while before the Meeting."

"And how do the Learned Ones display their work?" Sam asked.

"The majority use the projection computer system, and if you like, someone can show you how to operate it and place your work within it. Then, all you would have to do would be to project your samples onto a screen. Everyone would be able to see your work, thank goodness. Imagine putting it on a table for people to see! There would be a stampede and brawls over who got to see it first!"

SG-1 had a meeting in Daniel's quarters later that evening to discuss what they had learned. All told, it wasn't much, but it was something.

"Apparently, this learning meeting is a big thing here," Jack said, playing with a paper weight he'd taken from a nearby table. "I know you're great at what you do, Daniel, but why you?"

"Let me guess," Daniel said, holding up a hand. "You're thinking that there has to be more to this Meeting of Learning than meets the eye."

"I think we've been thinking that since we got here. The only problem is, what is it?" Carter wanted to know.

"I could not say," Teal'c said. "It does seem that learning is highly-valued here."

"Yeah, okay, but these guys are learning fanatics," Jack pointed out. "That's...just not normal. Daniel, you and Carter enjoy your work, but these people seem married to it! Why? And how do you factor into all this?"

"Perhaps the people here truly wish to learn what Daniel Jackson has to teach," Teal'c suggested.

"Yeah, but there are times when everyone seems more interested in Daniel than in his work," Carter said. "I mean, did you hear all of the personal questions that Martiis was asking? It was like someone gave him a list of questions to ask."

Daniel nodded. "How many years I spent in school, where I went to school, who my teachers were, what subjects I've taken, what languages I speak, what research I've conducted, what else I work on, who my parents were, what work they did, where they went to school, and so on. It's like he was trying to build an academic stat sheet on me. It was a little...disturbing, really."

"Yeah, and he didn't stop there," Jack reminded him. "He asked you if you've ever been married or if you have any kids or family. I thought the whole point of your coming here was to have a learning meeting, not interrogate you."

"I wonder if all of them are this curious?" Daniel said after a moment.

"Daniel, you've got to admit that there's something strange going on," Carter said into the silence that followed. "I'm just getting a feeling that there's something going on we're not seeing and that we won't like it once we know what it is."

"I agree with Major Carter," Teal'c said, looking at O'Neill and Daniel. "There is something very wrong here and it would be wise to be prepared."

"Yeah, but how do we prepare for it if we don't know what it is?" Daniel demanded. "I mean, should we get ready to leave at a moment's notice or defend ourselves and then evacuate?"

Jack looked very thoughtful. "I say we should be ready to head out at a moment's notice. Keep your radios on you at all times, and if anything happens, we should have a central rendezvous point so we can all meet up if we get separated. The clock tower. Big, easy to see, can't miss it. If you're unable to get there, give four squawks on a radio as a distress signal and then give your location so we can help you out."

"And 'do not attempt rescue'?" Carter asked. "We might as well be prepared," she said in response to Daniel's questioning look.

"Five squawks," Jack said. "Everyone got it?"

"Ready for immediate departure, carry radio. Rendezvous point, clock tower, four squawks if you need help, five if the situation's hopeless. Got it," Daniel said.

"As do I," Teal'c assured his team.

"Good. Well, let's get some rest, everyone. Keep a radio under your pillow."

Space

Sam, Jack, and Teal'c were woken up by four squawks a few hours before dawn.

"It's Daniel," they heard. "There was...well, there was someone in my room, and it wasn't Nevin. I just checked, and he's sound asleep."

"Did you see whoever it was?" Jack asked, getting out of bed and starting to dress.

"No, just their silhouette," Daniel admitted.

"All right, maintain your position, we'll be there in a minute," Carter said, pulling on clothes. In his quarters, Teal'c was doing the same.

A very worried-looking Daniel opened his door to his teammates and let them in.

"Anything missing?" Jack asked right away. "Your sidearm?"

"Right where I left it," Daniel assured him. "That was the first thing I checked besides my radio. All of my things are here, too. There's nothing gone, so why would someone be in here?"

"Maybe they just wanted to see what you looked like asleep?" Jack suggested.

Daniel resisted the urge to throw a pillow at him.

"Okay, how about you tell us exactly what happened?" Sam suggested. "From the first moment you woke up until they left."

"All right, let's see here," Daniel said, rubbing the back of his head. "I woke up, and I wondered why I had woken up. I was shifting around trying to get comfortable when I noticed that there was a shadow right by my bed where a shadow really shouldn't be. Then, I saw it move, and I realized it was a person. I started to ask who it was, but the person ran out of here so fast that I didn't see where he went."

"Daniel Jackson, you are bleeding," Teal'c said, surprised. "Your arm."

Daniel looked and saw a red streak of blood on one arm, and it looked as if it were getting bigger by the moment. Carter fished a first aid kit out of Daniel's pack and started to clean the cut. "How did you do this?"

"I didn't even know I'd done it," Daniel insisted. "I didn't even know it was there until Teal'c said something. Thanks, Teal'c."

"You are welcome."

"There's something wierd about this cut," Sam said as she cleared the last of the blood away, concerned.

"What?" Jack asked, craning his neck to get a good look.

"Well, I'm no doctor, but it looks like it was done with a scalpel. They cut a piece of skin out of his arm about two inches long and an inch wide."

"Why?" Daniel said, clearly surprised. "And why didn't that wake me up?"

"How much wine did you have tonight?" Jack reminded him. "Could be that stuff kept you from feeling it until they took the skin out."

"Maybe," Daniel conceded. "But why the heck would they do this? I mean, what would be the point?"

"A really sick fetish?" Jack opined, winking at Daniel.

"That's not helping, Jack."

"Well, how much do we really know about the people here?" Carter asked as she put the first aid kit away. "How advanced are they medically and scientifically?"

"So...you think they may want to...perform experiments on my skin?" Daniel wondered. "Why, though?"

"Well, you are the latest thing," Jack pointed out. "You know, the latest Learned One to show up and grace their institution of learning. You're kind of like a new celebrity. Everyone wants a piece of you."

"That's not funny."

"Okay, so we've got _something_ going on, but then again, I think we already knew that," Carter said before Daniel could try taking a swing at Jack. "Since they regard me as a Wise One in science, they won't be suspicious if I wander around the science departments. I'll try to find something that'll shed light on this whole thing."

"And Teal'c and I'll keep our ears to the ground, see if there's any talk at all," Jack said.

"Do you think I should mention this to Martiis?" Daniel asked, holding up his arm.

"I think...not yet," Jack cautioned him. "Keep your eyes open, though. Don't mention it unless he brings it up, okay?"

"You mean, if he asks me how I cut my arm? Sure."

"All right, since Daniel's okay, I suggest we all get some shut-eye. Daniel?"

"Jack?"

"You _are_ okay, right?"

Daniel smiled. "I'm fine. Thanks."

"No problem."


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

The next day, Carter wandered into the nearest science building and began poking around while Colonel O'Neill and Teal'c wandered the campus, keeping their eyes and ears open. Daniel was in a meeting with Martiis and a few others, discussing just what would be shown at the learning meeting and what each person could be expected to contribute. The science area was huge and she was only just beginning to realize how daunting her task was. How could she find anything in a place this big? There seemed to be more than one building that dealt with science, so how could she find the right one? Who could she talk to? So far, she'd found no other people, no labs she could poke about in, and no one who could tell her to find the places she needed. It seemed hopeless.

It seemed hopeless, that is, until she found a very helpful undergraduate with an hour or so to kill before his next class. He took her on a tour of the current building, which included physics, botany, mechanics, and biology labs. Biology labs seemed _very_ promising.

If Carter had gotten lucky, then Jack and Teal'c were having a streak of bad luck.

"Teal'c?"

"Yes, O'Neill?"

"Something about this place seem screwy to you?"

Teal'c considered his answer before speaking. "In what way, O'Neill?"

"Well, I know we've been walking for a while and I've been aiming at that big building over there, but we never seem to get any closer to it," Jack said, glaring at his target. "No matter how much we walk, we don't get closer. I wonder why."

"Perhaps if we moved in a different direction?" Teal'c suggested.

That proved useless and by noon, Jack and Teal'c were hot, sweaty, and tired.

"I'm gonna kill something," Jack muttered. "I wonder what would happen if we headed for the woods?"

Three hours later, the two men returned to their quarters in defeat and in high dudgeon. After cool baths and something to drink and eat, they tracked down Daniel, who was just returning from his meeting with Martiis.

"Hi," he said, sighing. "You guys look as frustrated as I feel."

"You know we can't leave the campus?" Jack asked, pulling Daniel into the common room of their quarters. "We tried walking around today and listening, and so far, we can't get any further than we've already been. We can't even go back to the woods and the Gate!"

"Um…how do you know?"

"'Cause we walked all day and we couldn't get anywhere!" Jack groaned. "Teal'c, tell him, would you?"

"O'Neill is indeed correct, Daniel Jackson," Teal'c assured him. "No matter which direction we attempted, we could go only so far and no further."

Daniel blinked, looking very worried. "How far _could _you get?"

"Only to places we've been before," Jack admitted. "How was your day?"

"Interesting," Daniel said, sighing. "I kept trying to figure out what everyone else was presenting and what the procedures for symposia are here, but they kept steering the conversation back to my work. It was embarrassing."

"Well, you are kinda the main attraction," Jack reminded him.

"And don't think that doesn't make me all kinds of worried."

"You should be," Sam said as she entered the room. "You really should be."

"I take it you found something," Daniel said.

"And how."

"Well, don't leave us hanging, Carter. What'd you find?"

"I managed to track down the biology labs," she said, sinking into a chair. "This whole campus is a maze, and every building in it is a maze! I wonder if they're studying how easily people can get lost?"

Jack cleared his throat.

"Okay, back to the topic, I found something interesting. I was in the biology labs and I started to talk to one of the biology Learned Ones. He spent hours in full lecture mode telling me about his work. Turns out he's been entrusted to 'parse' specimens of DNA. What they're for is beyond me, but one of the specimens of DNA was yours, Daniel."

"How'd you find that out?" Jack asked, surprised.

"I've seen Daniel's DNA printout before, and this printout I saw was identical. They're mapping your DNA, Daniel."

"Now we know what the skin sample was for," Jack muttered.

"Yeah, but the question we have now is 'why?'" Daniel said, sounding confused. "Did he happen to say anything about that, Sam?"

"All he said about that was that it was a great honor to be entrusted with this particular bit of work," Sam said. "Beyond that, I couldn't learn much. He wouldn't even tell me why he was mapping all those DNA samples."

"Great. So now we've got a mystery on our hands, and we don't even have Scooby and the gang to help us out by pulling a mask off the bad guy."

"Jack, I don't think Scooby would help," Daniel said, running a hand over his face.

"What aid would an animated Great Dane be?" Teal'c asked.

"It was a joke, Teal'c."

"It was not funny."

"Never mind," Jack said, getting to his feet to pace. "I say we inform our hosts that there's an emergency back home we have to take care of and then we get the hell out of Dodge. Something's not right here, and I don't want to stick around to find out what it is."

"We haven't been back to the Gate to communicate with home, so how do we tell them there's an emergency?" Daniel wanted to know. "If they've travelled through the Gate then they know you have to have an active Gate in order to communicate with the homeworld."

"Maybe we can pretend to be telepathic," Jack said facetiously. "Anyway, I don't like this situation, and we need to get out of here. Any objections?"

What their answers would have been they never knew, because at that moment there was a loud crash and a scream that made them look outside. A crowd was gathering, but no one seemed to be really doing anything. All four members of SG-1 ran out to see what the matter was only to see a student trapped under part of a collapsed ornamental wall. Mercifully, it was still in one piece and not too heavy, so the four of them were able to lift it without a problem. Carter started to check the girl over while Daniel found himself relegated to the reassurance department, supporting the girl's head and holding her hand and telling her that everything would be all right. By the time University emergency services arrived, she had Daniel's hand in a death grip and did not release him until the medics gave her something for the pain.

"Will she be all right?" Daniel asked one of the medics while the girl was settled on a floating stretcher.

"Her injuries are not severe, just painful," the man assured Daniel. "She'll be fine."

Jack stood up from examining the wall. "You might want to have your masons take a look at this wall. There's a bit too much sand in the mortar where the wall broke."

"It's fully possible," the medic said. "That wall was the work of students last month. They may not have realized the mixture was wrong. I'll have one of the masons look at it and the area will be cordoned off until repaired. Thank you all very much for your help."

"No problem," Jack said as the medics took the injured girl off. He and the rest of SG-1 headed back to their quarters. "Well, that was a little odd."

"That was a little scary," Daniel corrected him. "That kid was absolutely terrified."

"They said she'd be okay," Sam said, sitting down. "That's good."

"Anyone else think it's weird that that happened just as we were discussing leaving?" Jack pressed.

"You think they'd injure one of their students just to get us to forget about leaving?" Daniel said, surprised. "That's a pretty fast accident to arrange, Jack, not to mention that it's pretty extreme."

"We've been in places where they used extreme measures to keep us there before," Jack reminded him. "If you remember correctly, one place engineered a fake natural disaster! I'm not about to put anything past anyone here."

"Well, that is sorta your job," Daniel reminded him.

"And I'm gonna do it," Jack said. "Pack up, people. I'm gonna go tell Martiis that we've gotta go."

--

"Impossible!" Martiis said for the fifth time. "You simply must stay!"

"And I'm telling you, as I've been telling you for the last half-hour, we simply must go," Jack said. "We have our orders, and when we get orders, we follow them."

"Surely your superiors understand your need to stay," Martiis persisted. "Dr. Jackson did not even get to present his work!"

"Well, that's regrettable, but we do have to go," Jack insisted. "If I know Daniel, he'll insist on coming back as soon as he can to share all of his work with you, but right now it really isn't possible."

Someone knocked on the door and Martiis moaned. "What else can happen today? Come in!"

Nevin opened the door, out of breath and wide-eyed. "Sir, I've been sent to fetch you and Colonel O'Neill."

"What's wrong?" both men asked at the same time.

"It's Dr. Jackson, sir," the young man said. "He's been taken to the infirmary."

"For what?" Jack demanded, his suspicions rising.

"Tests, the orderlies said," Nevin said. "Major Carter asked me to come get the two of you so you can find out why. The orderlies would tell neither her nor Teal'c anything."

"They refused Teal'c answers when he wanted them?" Jack said, following Nevin as he and Martiis led the way. "Those guys have got some guts."

The infirmary was a building the size of a modern teaching hospital on Earth. Jack and Martiis followed Nevin all the way to the third floor, where Daniel was undergoing a huge battery of tests.

"Okay, why have you brought my archeologist here and why is he undergoing all these tests?" Jack demanded once Daniel's attending physician introduced himself.

"The tests are necessary," Physician Shea assured him. "Dr. Jackson may have been exposed to a virulent illness, and these tests are simply precautions."

"Is he sick?" Jack asked.

"Not that we can tell, no," Shea admitted.

"Then why don't you release him?" Jack said, his patience dangerously thin.

"We can't take the chance," Shea insisted. "Would you like him to carry back a disease to Earth against which you have no natural defense? It could be an epidemic!"

"If Daniel's been exposed to this, then it stands to reason that the rest of us have been exposed, too," Jack continued. "Why aren't we being tested?"

"Dr. Jackson was the only one among you who was in the area where traces of the illness were found, and it's spread through direct contact with the infected source," Shea explained patiently. "That's why. If you like, I can give you some antiviral drugs as a precaution, but the tests aren't really necessary."

"I want to see him," Jack said. "If it's not spread through person-to-person contact, then I should be okay, right?"

"I'll see if he can see you right now," Shea said. "He might be in the middle of a test."

Another ten minutes and Jack was in Daniel's hospital room. The physician had assured Jack that Daniel wasn't ill, but the poor guy sure looked it. His face was white, his lips gray, and there were dark circles under his eyes. Jack whirled at the physician and practically dragged the man back out into the hall. "What the hell's _wrong_ with him?"

"It looks much worse than it really is," Shea said quickly, a little surprised at Jack's reaction. "I promise you. The reason he looks like that is because of the side effects of his latest test, which are nausea, dizziness, and fatigue. He'll feel better in a short while."

"He's _gray_," Jack hissed. "Is that also a side effect?"

"Well, is your color ever good when you feel wretched?" Shea demanded.

"What about that test is making him feel so _wretched_?" Jack wanted to know.

"The solution he had to drink does not taste good at all, but it is necessary," Shea assured him. "The taste itself is enough to make anyone positively nauseous, but the test was exhausting. That's why he's so tired and wan-looking. He'll be fine in a short while."

"He'd better be, or you're gonna need a doctor yourself," Jack muttered, fighting against the urge to throttle him. He headed back into Daniel's room, feeling worry mount as he got a better look at Daniel. The guy looked like death overeasy. "Danny? Danny-boy? You okay?"

Daniel opened his eyes and looked at Jack. "Hi, Jack."

"Hey. How ya feeling?"

"Awful. They said I might have been exposed to something."

Jack sat down and leaned in close to Daniel so no one would overhear him. "Somehow, I don't think that's why you're in here. Why aren't they checking all of us, just in case? They said you had to be in direct contact with the virus for it to affect you, but I don't think that's it. Do you want to stay here?"

"Not anymore," Daniel said, sounding tired, tired, tired. "I did want to present my work, but I don't think we're being told the truth about anything. I'm sorry we came. Can we go home?"

"Sure, buddy," Jack said, helping him sit up.

"Colonel O'Neill?" Shea asked, coming into the room. "What are you doing?"

"I'm helping Daniel get up," Jack said tersely.

"Why?" Shea demanded, sounding more than a little shocked.

"Because we're going home," Jack informed him. "We have orders, so we're going. Any medical care Daniel needs he'll receive at home. We have good doctors there, and I'm sure Daniel will be just fine."

By this point Jack had Daniel's arm around his shoulders and was assisting him towards the door, but Shea stood in their way.

"I can't let you do that, Colonel," Shea said, sounding more than a little worried. "He could be infected."

"I don't think he is," Jack said. "He hasn't seemed sick once since he got here, so all evidence says that he isn't sick. We're going."

"Colonel, I'll call security if I have to," Shea ground out. "That man needs to stay in bed and he needs to stay here."

"_That man_ is standing right here, and he says he's going home," Daniel managed to croak. "I'm not staying."

"See?" Jack said, unable to resist nettling the doctor. "The vote's two to one. Let's go, Daniel."

Shea ran out the door, calling for security. Jack heaved Daniel up and over his shoulder in a fireman's carry and scooted down the hallway, hoping that the security detail in this hospital had lead feet. Jack hurried across the open plaza toward the woods, radioing Carter and Teal'c as he ran, telling them to drop everything except their GDOs and weapons and get to the Gate. He met up with them just as he entered the woods, and Teal'c plucked the limp form of Daniel from his back.

"Thanks, Teal'c," Jack said, trying to catch his breath. "Any problems?"

"We are being pursued by two vehicles."

"Ah, that would qualify as a problem," Jack said, not slowing down. "Any others?"

"We practically had to run a couple of people over to get out of our quarters," Sam said, keeping pace with the men. "That's another problem."

"It's a problem for them, Carter, not for us," Jack said, leaping a fallen log. "Let's clear out."

They had just made it to the Gate when they heard the first sounds of pursuit behind them.

"Thank God they can't get their cars through these woods," Sam said, dialing the Gate.

"We're not out of here yet," Jack said as the Gate came to life and he entered their IDC. "Let's go."

They were about to head up the steps to enter the Gate when men flooded out of the woods, tackling them. Jack fought, Sam fought, Teal'c inflicted injuries, and Daniel tried his best to get them to let him go.

"Let us go!" Daniel demanded. "What do you want?"

"You must return to the infirmary, Doctor Jackson," one of the men holding him said.

"I'm not sick!" Daniel protested, feeling hopelessness descend. He couldn't fight them off, he couldn't get away, and they wouldn't let him go.

"It will be all right," the man said, pressing something cold and sharp against Daniel's arm. "You'll feel better soon."

Blackness descended, dragging Daniel down into sleep.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

Daniel woke, his head splitting, his mouth dry, and his entire body feeling abominable. Every muscle he had felt cramped and every joint was on fire. Added to that, his stomach felt…In the next moment he was hanging over the side of the bed, beginning to retch into a basin that was conveniently within reach. The spasms continued until he felt certain his backbone was about to break in two. What was wrong with him?

"Easy there," someone said as they entered and placed their hands on his shoulders to support him. "This won't last long."

"What's wrong with me?" Daniel gasped just before another spasm made him retch.

"It's the illness," the voice said, laying a cool, damp cloth across the back of his neck. "You'll feel better soon."

"That explains exactly squat," Daniel said rudely, feeling far too sick and fed-up to be polite. "What's wrong with me exactly? What's causing these symptoms?"

"I am not a doctor or physician; I do not know," Daniel heard.

"Could you find one who could tell me?"

"I will see what I can do," the person promised, not moving from Daniel's side. "Right now, you need someone with you until these spasms stop."

Ten long, agonizing minutes later Daniel sank back into the pile of pillows on the bed in relief and closed his eyes. His abdomen ached, his head hurt, and despite washing his mouth out with water, his tongue felt furry and he longed for his toothbrush with all his heart. His ears had stopped ringing and he could hear clearly again.

"There," his nurse said, laying another cool cloth on his forehead. "Is that better?"

Daniel opened his eyes and found himself looking at a perfectly adorable creature. Large green eyes gazing at him were surrounded by a heart-shaped face, which was crowned with an intricate knot of strawberry blonde hair. A few tendrils had escaped from the knot to frame her face, and when she smiled at him, he was certain he felt his heart climb up into his throat.

_Easy, Daniel,_ he told himself. _It's been a while since Sha're, but that's no excuse for falling for a woman you've just met. You still love Sha're, so it doesn't matter how attractive you find her._

"Um, yes, thank you," he said quickly. "Uh, this might sound like a stupid question, but who are you and where am I?"

"My name is Lyssa, and you are in the palace. The Rulers asked that you be brought here when they found out you were ill."

"The Rulers? Who are they?"

"They are the Learned One Stane and the Wise One Mara," Lyssa said. "Their family has ruled this planet for generations."

"So they're the king and queen," Daniel said thoughtfully. "Do they ask that every Learned One who falls ill be brought to the palace?"

Lyssa tilted her head to one side and considered his question. "Not that I've ever known," she said. "Just you."

Daniel found that slightly disturbing. "Oh. Where are my friends?"

She looked as if she didn't understand.

"Um, there's Teal'c, he's tall and has dark skin and has a gold symbol here," he said, pointing to his forehead. "There's Jack, he's like me except he's a little older, has gray hair and a snappy temper, and there's Sam, she has short blonde hair and blue eyes and is a Wise One."

She nodded, smiling. "Snappy temper. Yes, I've seen your friends. They're here in the palace and they are quite…vocal about having to stay here."

"Jack _would_ be vocal," Daniel admitted. "Could I see them, please?"

"Would you prefer to wash and change first?" she suggested.

Daniel realized that she was telling him in the politest way she could that he reeked of illness and worse. "Ah, yes, that would be nice, thank you. Where do I do that?"

"Through that door," she said, helping him to sit up and then to stand. "I'll help you to the necessary and then to the bath, and I'll find some fresh clothing for you to wear. You must be ready for fresh garments by now."

"Thanks," Daniel said as she helped him. "I appreciate this."

She got him to the necessary and stood outside the door while he took care of…well, the necessary and then helped him to a bench that stood next to a large sunken tub.

"This way you won't have to climb in and out of a high tub," she said as she turned on the hot water. "There's soap here and there are towels right here next to the tub. Will you need help undressing?"

"Oh, no, I'm fine," Daniel assured her quickly. Was she some sort of palace nurse? She certainly seemed to be.

"All right, then, I'll be outside if you need anything," she said. She left, pulling the door closed behind her.

Daniel waited until the tub was full before getting undressed and sliding into the water. The water was almost too hot, but it felt great on his myriad aches and pains. What kind of illness made you hurt like this? He knew the flu made your joints ache, but this was like major surgery without anesthetic compared to the pinpricks of the flu. Putting that thought aside for later, he scrubbed until he felt human again, washed his hair, and yanked the stopper before getting out of the tub. He wrapped up in a towel until he was dry and only then did he realize that he had nothing clean to put on.

Oooh, boy. This had the potential to be embarrassing. Making sure that the towel was secure about his hips and that he was at least covered where he needed to be, he called for Lyssa.

"Yes?" she said, opening the door and poking her head in.

"I've finished, but I don't have any fresh clothes." _You will _not _blush_, Daniel told himself. _There's no reason for you to. She's a nurse._

"Oh, I have them here," she said, opening the door the rest of the way and coming in. "I was waiting for you to call me."

"Thanks," Daniel said as she handed him the clothes. He noticed that she seemed to be waiting for something. "Um, I can dress myself. I won't fall over or something."

She looked doubtful. "Are you sure? You're awfully pale."

"Quite sure," he hastened to say. "Very, very sure."

She nodded, accepting his determination to do what he could for himself. She went back out to give him the chance to dress, and he called her back when he tried to stand and found he couldn't.

"Here," she said, helping him up. "You've been ill for a while, and the doctor said you'd be very weak for a few days."

"Did that doctor say what was wrong with me?" Daniel wanted to know. "Was it Physician Shea?"

"I think so," she admitted. "I didn't talk to him personally, you see. Someone else spoke with him, and they told me."

"Oh."

By this time she'd gotten him back to his bed, where he saw that the sheets had been replaced and the basin had been emptied and cleaned. He was more than happy to sink back into the pillows and rest. Just that short walk had exhausted him, and he could feel his body trembling with fatigue.

"Would you like to see your friends?" Lyssa asked once he was settled.

"That would be great," he told her, trying to sit back up.

"Stay on those pillows," she said firmly, putting a hand on his shoulder to keep him where he was. "I'll ask someone to bring them, and in the meantime, you can use these." She handed him a small mirror, a comb, and some small thing he didn't recognize. "Your hair looks like a bird's nest since you washed it."

"Um, thank you," he said, perfectly happy to get some grooming done. He held up the strange object, a quizzical look on his face.

"Rub the soft end over your teeth, and it will clean them," she said, going toward the door. "You won't need to rinse your mouth or anything; the cleaning solution is perfectly benign. I'll see you in a few minutes."

Daniel took care of his teeth first and set the odd toothbrush aside, thankful to get that awful taste out of his mouth. Instead of mint, the solution on the brush tasted a bit like cinnamon. Not bad. Combing his hair took only a minute, and he set aside the mirror and comb feeling much more like a human being.

The door opened after another five minutes to reveal Lyssa and the rest of SG-1 accompanied by a pair of guards.

"Are the guards really necessary?" Daniel asked, surprised. Yes, they'd tried to return home and they inhabitants hadn't wanted them to, but wasn't assigning a security detail a little much? They wouldn't try to go without him, and until he could walk, he wasn't going anywhere.

"The Rulers feel that they are," Lyssa informed him quietly. "Your friends began to seem violent."

"Well, we wouldn't have been so mad if you'd just let us see Daniel earlier," Jack said. "How're you feeling?"

"Not as bad when I woke up, but still bad."

Jack nodded. "That's a heck of a knockout drug they have."

"Is that what it was?" Daniel asked, trying to remember if he'd been given anything and realizing that he had. "You know, I seem to remember someone telling me before I passed out that I would feel better soon, but if anything, I feel worse. Did you guys get a shot too?"

"Ohhh, yeah," Jack drawled. "We all got a shot of it, but Teal'c bounced back pretty quick. Nasty surprise for the people carting us back."

Teal'c actually looked pleased at Jack's mention of the incident. "They were not happy."

"Teal'c, you scared them half to death! Of course they weren't! My only regret is that I wasn't awake to see it!"

"It was most amusing, O'Neill."

"Sure. Rub it in that I was sawing logs against my will."

"Daniel, have you been told why we're being kept here?" Sam asked, sitting on the edge of his bed.

"Um...no. You? Has anyone told you?"

"Not a thing," she said, shaking her head.

"Nada, zip, zilch, bupkiss," Jack added. "It's not like we haven't asked, either!"

"I see," Daniel said thoughtfully as he looked for Lyssa. He saw the guards standing by the door trying their best to look as dangerous as possible, but he didn't see her. "I guess she left to give us some modicum of privacy."

"Who?"

"Lyssa," Daniel explained. "I guess she's a nurse here. You know, light hair, green eyes?"

"Oh, yes," Jack said, sounding angry. "Her."

"I take it she's done something to tick you off," Daniel said, beginning to wonder just how Lyssa had managed that. She seemed like a very sweet person and very easy to like.

"I suppose she's our handler," Sam said quickly before Jack could launch into the tirade he was clearly ready for. "She's been the one who comes to see us from time to time, to make sure we have what we need, and things like that."

"She doesn't make sure we have what we need," Jack snapped. "We need all our gear, our GDOs, and our BDUs, for cryin' out loud! They took every last bit of our stuff!"

"I guess that's to keep us here," Daniel said thoughtfully.

"Call it what it is," Jack ordered, beginning to pace. "It's a blatant attempt to keep us from escaping back to Earth!"

"But why, though?" Daniel wondered. "What possible reason could they have to keep us here? It doesn't make sense."

"Well, these people are scholar-happy," Sam reminded them.

"Major Carter, I believe they have crossed the fine line into scholar-obsessed," Teal'c said, actually surprising Jack so much that he laughed.

"Yep, they're obsessed. Now the only question is why they're obsessed with Danny-boy here."

Daniel eyed their guards speculatively. "Um, excuse me? Do you guys know why we're being kept here?"

"They haven't spoken a word to us since we woke up, so I doubt they're going to start now," Jack sighed. "Not knowing is starting to drive me nuts." He paused for a moment, noting Teal'c's expression. "It means it's driving me crazy. Lu-lu. Not in full possession of my faculties. Wack-o."

"I understand," Teal'c said.

Daniel sighed. "Well, I guess we won't get answers until they decide to give us some," he said quietly, sounding tired. He settled back into his pillows, feeling ready to go to sleep.

"You okay?" Sam asked, feeling his forehead for fever as a sudden burst of sisterliness popped up.

"I'm fine, Sam," he assured her. "Well, not really fine, just not any worse. I still feel sick. I was throwing up almost as soon as I woke up, and I feel weak. Like I've had a really, really bad superflu."

"Doc would have a field day trying to figure this bug of yours out," Jack said, flopping into a nearby chair. "Do you feel the same way you did while they were giving you all those tests?"

"Yeah," Daniel admitted. "Just as crappy."

"Perhaps you would feel better if you tried to drink something," Lyssa said as she came into the room. "Also, Physician Shea is here to see you."

"Excellent," Jack said, cracking his knuckles. "I could use a little boxing practice."

"Please take them back to their room," Lyssa said quickly to the guards.

"Oh, come on!" Jack said, holding up his arms in a 'what did I do?' gesture. "I was joking!"

"He really was," Daniel hurried to reassure her. "And I'd like them to stay, if you don't mind. Please?"

Lyssa nodded, but she still looked as if she had misgivings about granting Daniel's request. "They may stay if you wish. Now, try to drink some of what is in these mugs. Physician Shea said that you should be able to keep these down. They are nothing more than a light soup and fruit juice."

Daniel thanked her and took a cautious sip of the juice, showing relief when it stayed down. "Oh, that's better."

"Good to hear it," Shea said as he entered. "Very good. How are you feeling?"

"Um, fairly awful," Daniel said, putting the cup down. He wanted answers. "Could you tell me exactly what is wrong with me?"

"It is a virus," Shea said, taking out a small light to check Daniel's eyes. "It just wasn't the one we thought it was, fortunately. This one is much more mild and the effects are transitory."

"That's not funny," Jack said shortly.

Shea looked at him, confused. "What?"

"That joke you just told is not funny," Jack restated. "Mild? Transitory?"

"I assure you, that is exactly what I meant. Another few days and you'll feel just like your old self."

"Okay, I have a virus," Daniel said. "That doesn't explain why you had us hunted down and brought back here, nor does it shed any light on why you've taken all of our belongings."

"I thought I'd explained it to you the last time we spoke," Shea said. "We didn't wish you to carry the virus back to your home planet, and you seemed ready to become violent. That is why so many of our security personnel were sent out to bring you back."

"And all of our stuff?" Jack wanted to know.

"Your things are being sanitized. After all, Dr. Jackson was in contact with them, and the virus he actually has can survive on surfaces and clothing. It was only prudent to take these measures."

"It makes sense," Jack admitted.

"Glad to hear you believe me," Shea said, taking out what looked like a stethoscope.

"I didn't say I believed it, I said that it made sense!" Jack informed the doctor.

"Uh, it's part of Jack's job to be suspicious," Daniel said quickly.

"Especially when my team's concerned," Jack added. "How long before we can head home? General Hammond's got to be frantic by now. He worries when his kids are out too late."

Shea looked slightly confused at Jack's phrasing, but he didn't comment on it. "I'm not sure since this virus varies with each person," he admitted. "Three or four days at the least, ten at the most. It depends, really, on how good your recuperative powers are. You'll need to eat as much as you can and to rest as long as you can. No exertion." He listened to Daniel's heart and checked his throat as he took his pulse. "Everything sounds good for this stage of the illness, and it will continue to be good as long as you are careful. I'll need a blood sample."

"Why?" Jack asked at his most suspicious.

"To check the progress of the disease," Shea explained. "That will tell us how close he is to being well."

"Could we have our own doctor come here from Earth to check him out?" Jack asked.

"Would she know what to look for?"

"She knows what viruses are," Jack insisted. "Anything unusual would be what she's looking for, wouldn't it?"

Shea glared at him. "Your suspicions are becoming tedious, colonel."

Jack matched him glare for glare. "And? So? But? Therefore?"

Shea sighed. "All right, colonel. I've been informed that the contents of one of your packs are already sanitized, and among those items is what appears to be a medical kit. Would you like to take the blood sample? The people working on your gear have told me that you have blood collection apparatus."

"I'd like nothing better," Jack said. "Carter, will you do the honors?"

The kit was brought, Sam took the sample, and Shea thanked her as she handed it to him. "This would have been simpler if you'd allowed me to take the sample."

"Humor me a bit longer, huh? As soon as Daniel's better, we'll be out of your hair."

Shea said nothing as he left.

"Now I want you to finish your soup and juice," Lyssa said firmly, placing the neglected tray back on Daniel's lap. "You won't get better unless you eat."

"You remind me of Janet," Daniel said, picking up the mug of soup that was thankfully still warm.

"Who is Janet?"

"A Napoleonic powermonger back home," Jack said. "She's also our doctor. She likes to fuss every now and then."

"In between the times she's lecturing you," Sam joked.

Daniel almost choked on his soup and he had to put the cup down to laugh. "Please don't do that while I'm drinking something, please!"

"Perhaps your friends should return to their quarters now and let you get on with your meal," Lyssa suggested.

"Ah, his friends are staying right here," Jack said.

"I can have the guards take you," she threatened, sounding serious.

Jack glared at her. "Okay, let's get something straight. Are we prisoners here?"

She blinked in surprise and lost all of her fierceness. "Of course not."

"But we're not free to leave?" Jack asked.

"You know the reasons for that," she said.

"Mm-hmm. Well, I'm glad we cleared that little problem up. Once Daniel's better, will we be free to leave?"

"That will have to wait until Daniel's better," she pointed out.

"I see. Thank you."

Lyssa nodded. "You may stay with him until Daniel goes to bed. The guards will wait with you."

"The guards aren't really necessary," Daniel said.

"Those are orders," she said admantly. "There's nothing I can do." She left, leaving them alone with their guards.

"Wonder who gave her her orders," Jack said thoughtfully.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

"So let me see if I've got this straight," Jack said, still pacing around Daniel's room an hour later. "Shea says that you don't have the virus that he originally thought you had. Instead, it's something else that has the capability to be spread among people by being able to live on surfaces."

"Exactly," Sam said, recapping the physician's words. "Say a guy sneezed and then touched something. Anyone else touching that object could pick up the virus."

"Ew," Jack said, thinking. "So that's why they took all our stuff, or why they _said_ why they took all our stuff."

Teal'c raised an eyebrow.

"Teal'c, you know it's my job to be suspicious."

"Taking our things is a ploy to keep us here?" Teal'c said.

"Either that, or this virus they claim Daniel has," Jack pointed out.

"Whatever it is, I hate it, and I know I feel awful," Daniel said from his nest of pillows. Having plenty of pillows eased his body's aches and pains, and he was thankful for them. He had a feeling that either Lyssa or Shea had gotten them for him and they certainly made a difference. He hated to think how much he'd hurt if he didn't have them. "I don't see why they'd want to keep me here so badly."

"Let's examine that, shall we?" Jack said, ready to launch into a catalog of all of Daniel's misadventures.

"Let's _not_," Daniel said quickly. He didn't need to be reminded of those times.

"The colonel has a point," Sam said, grinning. "Most people find you irresistible."

"Especially people off-world," Jack added, unable to resist.

Daniel fought the urge to throw a pillow at his friends. "Knowing that doesn't get us out of our present situation."

"Give it a couple days," Jack said. "General Hammond's bound to start worrying sooner or later, and then he'll start sending the cavalry."

"What cavalry?" Daniel wanted to know, hoping to throw their watchdogs off any scent.

"Well, I'm just saying," Jack said, quickly picking up on Daniel's subtle hint.

"What I don't get is why they're still pretending," Sam said quietly so their guards wouldn't hear.

"That's the million dollar question," Jack said, running his fingers through his hair. Sometimes he got lucky and the move warded off a headache, but not always.

"I would have thought that question worth at least two million, O'Neill," Teal'c said.

"You're making jokes?" Jack said in shock. "Okay, who are you and what have you done with Teal'c?"

"It is I, O'Neill," Teal'c said, trying to reassure his friend.

"I was joking, Teal'c," Jack said, surprised yet again. He'd thought Teal'c would get it, but apparently he hadn't.

"How long do you think it will take us to figure out what's going on?" Sam wondered.

"Probably a couple days if we're still going at this rate tomorrow," Jack said. "Daniel?"

When Daniel didn't say anything, Jack turned around to see why the man was quiet. If the nurses of the SGC ever saw Daniel the way he was now, the man would not be safe. Even Sam was looking at him with a semi-soppy smile. Daniel was deeply asleep, head to one side, balled fist beside his head. He looked like a child put down for his nap.

"Aww," Jack said. "If Dr. Frasier and her minions could see him now."

"Shh, sir. You'll wake him!" Sam whispered.

"Lyssa said you were to remain until he slept," one of the guards whispered as he approached. "It is time to go."

Jack stared at him. "He speaks!" he said quietly.

"It is time to go," the man repeated.

"Okay, okay," Jack said as the guards herded them out the door. He was more than a little pleased to see that Teal'c had the "murder" look on his face. "You don't need to push."

--

Over the next few days, Jack, Sam, and Teal'c spent time in either Daniel's quarters or their own. When they went to Daniel's quarters, it was usually to field his questions. Except for necessary times, Daniel was not allowed out of bed on Physician Shea's orders and his ever-vigilant nurse was always there to make sure he complied, and as a result, Daniel began to be very, very bored. Whenever his friends came he kept them at a run with questions about the world outside his room: what the palace looked like, the type of architecture used, what the people were like, and so on. After a question session, Daniel usually napped. As Daniel's conscious periods and their visits grew longer, Lyssa began to be, if not accepted, then at least tolerated. She arranged for them to have meals together (although Daniel was still on convalescent fare) and she found things they could use to distract and occupy Daniel. She found them books and games, and sometimes an afternoon or evening could pass without their noticing due to some game they had going or some book they were all reading. Usually they would take turns reading aloud to the group, and Daniel's favorite book was a history of the planet. It seemed that close to eight hundred years ago, the people of the planet had almost died in a war that had destroyed almost everything. In order to keep that from ever happening again, the people had decided that they would devote themselves to all kinds of learning instead of fighting, so they established the University and invited the best teachers they could find to come and teach. After one hundred years the University became the new world capital and the Rulers were chosen based on the number of scholars that certain families had produced. Their descendants still ruled and over the years, the University grew until it reached its present size.

"Interesting," Jack said once he'd heard the entire book.

"Eight hundred years to make a university this size?" Sam said thoughtfully. "Is that possible?"

"Most universities on Earth are limited by cities around them, but here, they don't seem to have that problem," Daniel said, setting the book aside. "They could spread out as much as they wanted. Also, the University is the only such institution they have here. It's a city in itself."

Slowly, Daniel seemed to get better, and Physician Shea seemed pleased with his progress. Daniel would be weak a while yet and needed to remain in bed as much as possible, but he wouldn't be harmed by short forays out of his room as long as he kept walking to a minimum. That meant, much to Daniel's embarrassment, that he had to travel to different destinations in a wheelchair and only walk once they reached where they were going.

"I'm fine," Daniel said the first time Lyssa suggested going somewhere and a wheelchair had been brought. "I can walk just fine."

"Let's see you walk, then," she said, stepping aside. "Go ahead and walk across the room and we'll see how you do."

It was a good-sized room, complete with a sitting area, study area, dining area, and the bedroom area, so Daniel had quite a bit of space to walk in. By the time he reached the other side of the room he was sweating, shaking, and exhausted, and Lyssa had to rush across the room to catch him.

"Maybe...I'll use...the wheelchair," he gasped as Lyssa helped him into it.

"After you rest a little," she said, wheeling him across the room to his bed. "We'll try again this afternoon."

That afternoon she wheeled him to a sunroom nearby, and the rest of SG-1 joined him for a chat. Jack wheeled him up and down the long room at a sedate pace and Daniel enjoyed being able to see outside and to feel the sun.

"This baby looks like it could corner on rails," Jack said, taking in the sleek lines of the wheelchair.

"It's definitely got the ones back home beat," Daniel said. "It's very comfortable."

"I wonder how fast it can go."

"Well, I don't see any controls or power source," Daniel said, examining the arms of the chair. "JACK!"

Jack had taken off at a run, startling the rest of SG-1, Lyssa, and their guards. He ran all the way down to the end of the room, turned, and shot back the other way, almost running people down. By the time they stopped, Lyssa and the guards were ready to read Jack the riot act while all of SG-1 were laughing.

"Handles pretty well," Jack said as Daniel gasped for breath. "Breathe, Danny."

"I'm trying!" Daniel howled. "That was fun!"

"That was dangerous!" Lyssa said, looking furious. "He could have fallen out of the chair!"

"Oh, don't get your hair in a knot," Jack said, then he stopped and looked at her hairstyle. "Um, don't let it get unknotted, then. He was holding on and I wouldn't have let him fall."

The next time Daniel went out in the wheelchair, Jack was not allowed to push.

Jack and SG-1 reigned in their impatience while they were the palace's 'guests.' They were patient with their guards and with Lyssa and they spent most of their time helping Daniel recover from his illness, whatever it was. They wheeled him through picture galleries whenever they could, and more than once they wheeled him to a huge library that Lyssa called the Little Book Room. Lyssa refused to let him do any serious studying for very long and kept him supplied with 'light' reading material. For Jack, that reading material would have been called "lumber," but Daniel seemed happy enough with it. Lyssa supplied him with even lighter material, books of stories that usually were entertaining, and a great number of them were smuggled back to Daniel's room so they could all read them together later.

The best places to go were the gardens. Jack wondered idly if gardening were a major at the University, because clearly someone had made the palace gardens their life's work. There were flower gardens, rock gardens, water gardens, herb gardens, hothouses, and shrub mazes and stone labyrinths. They spent at least a few hours outside on most days, pushing Daniel through the gardens or finding a nice spot to have a picnic or al fresco dinner. Lyssa and their guards were always there, but SG-1 started to think of Lyssa as their tour guide since she often had some little piece of information to share about what they were seeing. The guards were just...guards.

Things came to a head for SG-1 the next time Physician Shea gave Daniel an exam. Daniel had begun walking more and more, leaving the chair behind, his appetite returned, and his color was healthy, so Shea wanted to give him a check-up. He seemed exceedingly pleased as he checked Daniel over and jotted things down.

"So, how is he?" Jack asked, standing next to Daniel's chair.

"He is much better," Shea said, finishing his notes. "The virus seems to have run its course, and all that has to be done now is to wait for him to get back his strength."

"Any chance of one of us having it?" Sam asked.

"You would have shown symptoms by now," Shea told her. "I'm sure the three of you are fine."

"Good," Jack said. "When can we go?"

Shea looked blank.

"You said we couldn't go since Daniel was sick and we couldn't risk carrying it back to Earth," Jack said patiently. "Now that he's better, I want to know one thing: when can we go home?"

Shea shook his head. "I was afraid you'd ask that. First of all, please realize that--"

"Get to the point," Jack snapped. "When can we go?"

"I'll handle this, Physician," Lyssa said, stepping forward.

"Thank you," Shea said fervently. "If there's any negative change in Daniel, let me know at once. I'll stop by again in a few days to look him over." He packed up his bag and scuttled out the door so quickly that Jack was surprised the man didn't leave skid marks.

Lyssa turned to SG-1. "Your question is when will you return home, correct?"

"Yes," Jack said, trying to stay patient. "Correct."

"Well, you, Teal'c, and Major Carter may return home any time you wish, now. Your things will be returned to you. Daniel is fine."

"Yes, we know he's fine," Jack said. "Daniel, you got anything here you want to pack?"

"You misunderstand, colonel," Lyssa said, holding up a hand. "I said that you, Teal'c and Major Carter could go. I said nothing about Daniel."

"What do you mean?" Sam asked just as Daniel said, "What?"

"I do not understand," Teal'c said, beginning to sound dangerous.

"Explain," Jack ground out, looking ready to kill a certain nurse.

Lyssa nodded. "I shall. Have you ever wondered why you never encountered our teams while you were exploring? After all, our people explore, too, but you've never encountered any of us."

"Sometimes," Daniel said, looking thoughtful.

"That is because we cannot leave the planet for long. Everyone born here has an organism in their blood that causes great pain, fever, and illness if that person leaves the planet for a space longer than a few hours. The virus that Daniel has had is that organism. He cannot leave this planet for longer than three hours at the most. Longer than that would lead to even greater pain and then death."

"Why didn't you tell us this _sooner_?" Jack said, his voice getting significantly louder with each word.

"Because we were not certain until today," she said, ignoring the fact that he was practically yelling. "We have not had visitors come here from another planet for a very, very long time."

"You knew this thing existed, but you still invited us," Jack groaned. "That sounds suspiciously like a trap."

"How dare you!" Lyssa gasped. "We would never--!"

"Well, you already have!" Jack hollered, pointing at Daniel.

Lyssa glared at Jack. "I am sorry, colonel, but I cannot change the facts. The organism has entered Daniel's bloodstream, and once it is there, it cannot be removed or treated. There are no symptoms past the initial illness, which in itself causes weakness that lingers for a few weeks. Physician Shea originally thought that Daniel had had something else, and the side effects from those tests were what made Daniel ill the first time but Shea was testing for the wrong thing. The possibility of Daniel contracting this organism didn't occur to him until later since it is usually passed from mother to child before the baby is born."

"Well, how _did_ Daniel get it, then?" Sam demanded.

"The only way that Physician Shea can think of is through blood," Lyssa said calmly. "Daniel may have come into contact with someone's blood or cut himself on something that had some remnant of someone else's blood on it. From what Shea has told me, Daniel was in contact with a student's blood when he held her after a wall had fallen on her and Martiis said that he had a bandage on his arm, probably to cover a cut or scrape. Isn't that right, Daniel?"

"Yes, but that bandage covered something more than a cut," Daniel said, sounding as if he were certain he'd wake up soon. "On my first night here, I woke up and saw someone in my room. They left, but later Teal'c noticed that I was bleeding. Turns out that that person cut a strip of skin out of my arm. I don't know why they did it, but Sam was in one of the biology labs the next day. There was someone there working with DNA, and she spotted my DNA printout. She's seen it before and she knows what it looks like, so I trust her judgement. Why would someone cut me in the middle of the night, and why would there be someone working on my DNA the next day?"

"I do not--"

"Lyssa?" Daniel said quietly, interrupting her.

She stopped and looked at him.

"Please. Please don't lie to me. I know you know."

She shook her head as if hoping to convince either him or herself of something. "I do know, but I've been ordered not to tell you."

"Why?" Daniel asked. "Why can't you tell us?"

She shook her head again. "I dare not. Please, Daniel, don't insist on this."

"I'm afraid I have to," Jack said, stepping forward. "Tell us, Lyssa."

She went pale. "No!"

Daniel held up a hand and shot a warning glance at Jack. They couldn't afford to alienate someone who, by the slimmest of chances, might actually be on their side. After all, she'd been kind to all of them even though sometimes they (Jack, really) had been rude. "All right, you've been ordered not to tell us," Daniel said, making her draw a relieved breath of air. "Will we be told later? Tomorrow, or the day after?"

"I don't know when you'll be told, but someone will tell you, at least within the next week or so."

Daniel could hear Jack's teeth grinding and he had to stop for a moment to listen to the sound in fascination. He'd read about people doing that, but he'd never actually heard it before. "All right. You said that Jack, Sam, and Teal'c could go, but could they stay? Until everything's explained, at least. Will that be all right?"

She nodded. "They may stay as long as they wish," she said. "The Rulers wish you to be happy while you're their guest. They would not insist your friends go if you want them here."

"What if they wanted to go and then come back?" Daniel asked. "Could they do that? Would they be welcome on their return?"

"Of course," Lyssa said. "You have not only my word, but the word of the Rulers."

"Thank you," he said before turning to his friends. "Guys, do you think a short trip home would be too much trouble? You know, just to let General Hammond know I'm all right and to tell him what's happened?"

"I'll do that," Jack said. "Carter, you and Teal'c will share command of the unit while I'm gone, so you'd better agree on stuff, got me? I'll want a full report when I get back."

"Yes, sir," Sam said.

"Understood, O'Neill."

"Then I'll head for home," Jack said. "Could I get my gear?"

"I'll send someone for it," Lyssa said, nodding. "I'll be right back."

She left, but the guards were still there.

"Before I go, I'll be taking a blood sample," Jack said quietly to Daniel.

"What if I actually have something in my blood?" Daniel pointed out. "You could be carrying a plague back to Earth, Jack."

"You and I both know that's not gonna happen," Jack said. "I'll get Janet to take a look at it and to tell me what's really going on."

--

The trip home went off without a hitch. Jack's gear was returned to him, a vehicle took him as far as the woods, and he pelted to the Gate as quick as he could. He got back to Earth and was met in the Gate room by an irate General Hammond.

"Colonel O'Neill, why have you not been answering the damn phone? And where's the rest of your team?"

"Long story, general," Jack said. "I left Carter and Teal'c with Daniel, who is not allowed to leave the planet for reasons I'm trying to determine." He took out the blood sample. "Dr. Frasier should have a look at this. People on that planet claim that Daniel's caught a virus that will kill him if he returns home. Apparently, this bug pitches a hissy fit if people leave the planet for too long; they said the limit was three hours. I think it's all garbage, myself, but let's see what the doc thinks, huh?"

Hammond looked at him. "Why am I not surprised you've brought an alien bug back to Earth?"

"It's contained," Jack protested. "See? It's in it's own little tube."

The general ordered Jack to the infirmary and for the love of all things still sacred and Goa'uld-free, to be careful with the tube as he took it to Dr. Frasier. Just to be safe, Hammond went with him. "You think they made up an excuse to keep Dr. Jackson there?"

"I think it's more than likely," Jack said. "You should have seen how nuts they all were about him. Someone actually cut a piece of skin out of his arm so they could parse his DNA. That's taking fanatical devotion a little too far, I must say."

"Indubitably," Hammond said as they reached Frasier's domain.

The doctor took the sample from Jack and hurried with it into an iso room while another of the medical staff began the colonel's physical. Once he was declared the happy possessor of a clean bill of health he was told to shower, get a fresh uniform, and to report to the general for debriefing. He was in his accustomed chair within a half-hour and describing each and every thing that had happened. That took an hour and a half since the general wanted a great amount of detail, and Jack was more than grateful when the base phone in Hammond's office rang.

"That was Dr. Frasier," General Hammond said, coming back into the debriefing room. "She would like both of us down there ASAP."

In general-speak, now. The two of them headed down to the infirmary to find the doctor pacing.

"What's the news, doc? Should I head back right now and tell them they're full of it?"

Janet shook her head. "That's one hell of a virus you brought me, colonel."

Jack stopped in his tracks. "Come again?"

"It's a virus, and it's a doozy," she said, stopping to look at him. "We didn't find it in your blood, but what about Sam and Teal'c?"

"Neither of them have shown symptoms," Jack said. "I haven't brought back their blood or anything for you to test, though. You're saying there's actually a virus in that blood sample?"

"One that has me nervous," Janet told him. "Very, very nervous. I'd hate to think what would happen if this bug got loose. I think the sample itself should be incinerated. I have photos and I've listed its actions, and I would feel a lot better if this thing was gotten rid of.

"At your discretion, doctor," General Hammond said. "I know better than to question your opinion."

"What about Daniel?" Jack asked, fighting down a rising feeling of panic.

"At our current level of technology, I can't do anything to help him," Janet said. "The best we can do is hope either the Tok'ra or Asgard have some ideas."

"Sir?" Jack said, turning to General Hammond.

"Colonel?"

"Permission to return to that planet and kick some off-world butt?"

"Permission to return granted, but no butt-kicking. Try to learn as much about this bug as you can and see if these people know more about it than they told you. Bring Dr. Jackson home as soon as you can."


	8. Chapter 8

This chapter's dedicated to Hearty1. Hope she's feeling better!

Chapter 8

"So I actually have a virus," Daniel said, leaning back in his chair.

"According to Janet, yeah," Jack said, sighing. "How're you feeling?"

"Better than I was, but still tired," Daniel admitted. "Did she say if there was anything she could do?"

"She said it was unlike any virus she'd ever seen," Jack said, pulling out a small folded packet of papers from his pocket. "This is her report on that bug and everything she tried on it. The general said that he'll contact the Tok'ra and the Asgard to see if they have any ideas, but until we hear otherwise…" Jack let his voice trail off, uncertain of how to reassure his friend.

Daniel took the report Jack handed him and scanned it. "Why is she calling it a superbug?"

"Probably because it is," Jack pointed out. "She said that it almost seemed intelligent. It was actually evading the antiviral drugs she was trying on it. They had some effect, but not much."

"I wonder what the little viruses did when she incinerated them," Daniel said as he came to the end of the report.

"Probably panicked before bursting into flame."

"Funny. You don't think that maybe they might actually have been intelligent, do you? We've come across that before."

"Don't remind me," Jack said quickly, not eager to delve into those memories. "And as for your question, if this thing were intelligent, don't you think it would realize it was hurting people and want to stop?"

"Well, there are some races that don't feel bad when they hurt others. It's in their genetic makeup."

"Like the Goa'uld?" Jack asked. "Even if this bug is the microscopic version of the Goa'uld, that doesn't mean I'm about to forgive it for getting you sick and putting you in this mess."

"I wouldn't expect you to," Daniel said. "I'm kind of mad about this mess myself."

"What did you guys do while I was gone?" Jack asked, hoping to distract Daniel a little.

"More of the same," Daniel admitted, sounding a bit bored. "Walks outside, meals, me sleeping, games, reading. Nothing to write home about."

"I've noticed the guards are missing," Jack said pointedly. "How'd you pull that off?"

"I told Lyssa that since you guys were clear of the danger and that I wasn't about to go rushing home, then the guards weren't really necessary. Besides, I gave her my word that none of us were about to start bashing people's heads in."

"Rash promise, Danny, 'cause I'm feeling more like it every minute," Jack muttered, resting his head on his hand.

"Please don't prove me wrong, Jack," Daniel requested. "I told her we can be trusted. Besides, catching an alien bug is part of the risk of going through the Gate. We all knew that when we signed on."

"Yeah, but why do the bad things always seem to happen to you?" Jack wanted to know. "It's like the universe has it in for you or something."

"Sir?"

Jack looked up to see Carter standing there, looking a little…tense. "Carter?"

"Lyssa's here, and she says that we've been invited to have tea with the Rulers."

Jack felt his eyebrows shoot up. "Tea?"

"That's what she says."

Jack looked at Daniel. "Tea? Where are we, England?"

"Actually, they have the custom of afternoon tea in other places than England, Jack."

"Still," Jack persisted. "Will there be crumpets? Scones? Wait a sec, what the heck _is_ a crumpet, anyway?"

"Kind of like an English muffin," Daniel explained.

"Oh. So, shall we accept the invitation?"

"It would be polite," Daniel said.

"Who says I'm polite?"

"We might get answers," Sam told him. "In fact, sir, I think this may be it. I think that the Rulers have invited us to tea so they can explain this whole thing…Lyssa seemed a little…hmmm."

"A little hmmm?" Jack said, raising an eyebrow.

"Upset, I think. She wasn't calm, but she did seem anxious. I asked her if she was going to be at tea with us and she said she was."

"Oh. Can we come as we are?"

"Lyssa suggested we change into things that are not our uniforms."

Jack groaned. "All righty. See you in a few, Daniel.

--

Lyssa led them into a part of the palace they hadn't been in before. The rooms were larger, grandiose and the decorating more lavish, as if to impress outsiders with the wealth and good taste of the inhabitants. Jack wondered how long it took the cleaning staff to dust everything and how often they had to do it. Maybe, he thought, this planet had produced little machines that dusted and kept the place up. Kind of Replicators combined with Merry Maids? It was fully possible with everything else that went on here.

"In here," Lyssa said, leading them to a door and opening it. Once inside, she led them toward a table and to two people—a man and a woman—who were standing there waiting. They looked every bit as grand and…stiff…as their section of the palace, and Jack wished he could leave the room without causing a diplomatic incident.

"Rulers," Lyssa said, giving a curtsy after she approached them. "May I present SG-1?"

The man nodded.

"This is the warrior Colonel Jack O'Neill, the warrior Teal'c, the Wise One Samantha Carter, and the Learned One Daniel Jackson," Lyssa said, gesturing to each person in turn.

"We welcome you, warriors, Wise One and Learned One," the woman said. "I am Ruler Mara, and this is my husband, the Ruler Stane."

"Pleased to meet you," Jack said. "And thank you for the invitation."

"Our pleasure," Jana said, motioning them to the table.

_I bet it is,_ Jack thought, keeping the pleasant smile on his face.

They were seated and hot drinks and dishes were being handed around when Mara began the conversation that seemed to be a requisite of tea tables everywhere. "How are you feeling, Dr. Jackson?"

"Much better," Daniel said, accepting a cup of something hot.

"It is good to hear it," Stane said. "I hope this illness will not unduly hinder your studies."

"Well, I usually travel through the Gate," Daniel said cautiously. "Since this virus now makes it impossible for me to leave the planet; that might be a hindrance."

"We will have to see what can be done about that," Mara said, all consideration and kindness.

Jack found her quite annoying.

"Mara's right," Stane said. "It is possible to leave the planet for short periods."

Daniel thought about missions that took at least two days for diplomatic relations to be set up and fought down a feeling of despair.

Jack looked at the cup of…what was it?...that he'd been handed and decided to cut through the crap. "Are we going to get answers?"

"Jack…"

"Let me handle this, Daniel," Jack said, determined that they were going to have an explanation one way or the other. "You invited us to tea. That's the first time you've done that. I can't help but think that there has to be a reason for it. We know Daniel has this virus, but we also know that someone's been parsing his DNA on someone's orders. Now, perhaps someone's overstepped his authority and ordered it done without you knowing about it, but if you ordered it, we would like to know why. I have a strong feeling that some mistake made by that person gave Daniel the virus."

Mara and Stane exchanged looks.

"Tell me," Jack said quietly.

"Mother."

Heads whipped around to stare at Lyssa. "Mother?" Jack said, surprised.

Lyssa looked as if she were trying not to cry. "Mother, I think you should tell them."

"When were you going to tell us you were their daughter?" Jack wanted to know.

"That's not important," Lyssa said. "Mother? Father?"

Mara sighed. "I suppose you're right, Lyssa. We should tell them."

"Can't wait," Jack said. "We're all ears."

Mara looked confused. "Ears?"

"It's a phrase on Earth that means that we're ready and eager to listen to anything you have to tell us," Daniel said, fighting off an impeding headache. Jack always suspected plots and sometimes those suspicions of his were unfounded, but that didn't seem to be the case this time. That didn't make him feel any better.

Mara set aside her cup. "First of all, you must know that we don't know everything about the virus. It's existed for as long as we can remember, and we don't know who first had it or where it came from, but it does have some benefits."

Sam almost dropped her cup. "What possible benefits could there be?"

"Oh, many," Stane assured her. "Once you have the virus, you're never bothered by any other illness. You heal from injury more quickly, and even if you neglect yourself, it's harder to become exhausted. You only exercise when you wish to since it seems as if you've always kept yourself in top condition."

"How can that be?" Teal'c asked.

"Our physicians have not been able to figure out why it happens, but it is as if the virus itself does it and influences our bodies for its benefit."

"So this thing first infects you and then performs maintenance?" Jack said, sounding ready to kill something.

"As far as we can tell," Mara conceded. "But that's not all it does. If we mistakenly ingest something poisonous or even just unwholesome, the virus negates the substance. Since the appearance of the virus, we have never had a case of madness. The virus somehow stops that from happening. We've never had children with congenital defects or illnesses because the virus seems to…well, help us choose a proper mate."

Teal'c's eyebrow shot skyward. "How so?"

"You feel…off…if you choose someone based only on your attraction to him or her," Stane said. "Sometimes such attraction is misplaced. When you choose the best person for you, the feeling goes away."

"Incredible," Sam said, fighting down a feeling of revulsion. Sure, the thing had benefits, but she was pretty certain that she never wanted to have something in her body that affected her as much as this thing seemed to influence its hosts.

"And have your physicians figured out a way to get rid of it?" Jack demanded.

"Few ever want to get rid of it, colonel," Stane told him. "They enjoy the benefits too much. In the past some have chosen to live without the virus and had treatment to remove it from themselves, but that knowledge is no longer available. It's been a few centuries, and sources of the knowledge have been lost."

"Then you'll have to figure it out again," Daniel said firmly. "Or we'll have our scientists figure it out. I can't stay here for the rest of my life."

"Well, we were hoping to make your time here enjoyable," Mara said hopefully. "You are a very honored Learned One, Dr. Jackson, and we hope that you'll consent to be our guest until some sort of a solution is found."

Briefly Daniel wondered if the fact that he was a Learned One was the reason why Lyssa had been his de facto nurse. Some sort of diplomatic honor, perhaps? "I don't see that it would make a difference if I stayed here or went somewhere else, so I suppose if I may impose on your hospitality…"

"It is no imposition," Mara assured him. "Not at all. We hope that we'll be able to make you comfortable here and that you will enjoy your stay."

"There's still one thing that hasn't been explained," Jack persisted. "Why did someone take a bit of skin out of Daniel's arm and why was his DNA being parsed?"

Again, Mara and Stane exchanged looks.

"I'm not gonna let this one go," Jack said. "You might as well tell us."

Mara nodded. "When our daughter confessed an attraction to Dr. Jackson, we thought it best to have his DNA examined in case the attraction led to a union between them. After all, when he arrived, Dr. Jackson did not have the virus and we did not know if it would be effective for any children he sired, and we did not know if it would be passed to him during…well, close contact with Lyssa, and that didn't guarantee that any children conceived before he received the virus would be healthy."

Daniel fought down the inclination to choke. Lyssa was attracted to him? Ooooh, boy. This was…embarrassing. He stayed in his chair and worked the hardest he could to _not_ look at her.

"Who took the DNA sample?" Sam asked quietly.

"We asked Physician Shea to arrange it, but if he did give Daniel the virus, it would have been entirely by accident. Shea would never have done anything like that."

Jack didn't believe it but he didn't say so aloud. Daniel having the virus before he hooked up with anyone on this planet would have solved any problems quite nicely, and Jack knew there were people out there who were willing to do anything to accomplish what they wanted. He felt that he needed to do a little judicious investigating and he would form his opinion afterward.

"I am sorry," Lyssa said, beginning to cry. "If I'd known that it would come to this…" She stopped, trying very hard not to break down.

"You had no way of knowing," Daniel said, finally looking at her. "It isn't your fault."

"It's not anyone's fault either, least of all yours, Daniel," Jack said. "We just have to try to figure this out."

Daniel nodded, but deep inside his mind, he was thinking.

--

"I still say it's crazy," Jack said a week later, sounding very grumpy as he, Daniel, Teal'c, and Carter headed toward the Gate.

"Well, the general agrees with me," Daniel said. "There's little point in you guys hovering here for ages on end while Physician Shea works on this problem."

"I still don't trust that guy," Jack muttered.

"He's the one who knows the most about the virus," Daniel pointed out. "He's the best person to come up with some way to treat it."

"I'm only going back to Earth under protest," Jack said. "I can't believe I'm such a pushover."

"Maybe it's because you're now following orders?" Daniel said. "That could explain why you're such a pushover right now."

"Ha, ha, ha. That was funny. _Not._"

"It's all settled," Daniel reminded him. "You guys will go on missions with a new fourth until I'm treated. In the meantime, the cultural staff at the SGC will be in contact with me here and sending me work. I'll still be able to visit Earth as often as I'd like so long as it's not for too long."

"It sucks and you know it," Jack growled as they reached the Gate and Carter began dialing.

"Yeah, it sucks," Daniel agreed. "Well, let's go. I know Janet's just waiting to get her claws in me. I _hate_ physicals!"

"Just comfort yourself with the fact that she'll have to put some speed on the tests," Jack told him. "We've got a time limit."

"That's something, I guess."

"You'll be able to get coffee."

"There's that."

"And chocolate bars."

"Another positive."

Sam fought down a chuckle as she headed through the event horizon. She knew Colonel O'Neill was only trying to cheer Daniel up, and Daniel always let him. It was good to know that no matter how bad things got, those two could always count on one another.


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

Jack charged through the Gate at a run with Daniel flung over his shoulder, cursing under his breath. It had been a mere two hours before Daniel suddenly began complaining of feeling a little off and ten minutes later he collapsed, dead white and unconscious. Jack swore like a fiend while he got his friend to the Gate room and while the Gate was dialed, and he was still swearing as he ran through to the other side. Carter and Teal'c were still in Daniel's office, packing up the things he'd wanted and assembling a Daniel care package, but their commanding officer and archeologist were on another planet.

Carefully, Jack lowered Daniel to the ground and tapped his face, waiting for him to wake up. According to what Shea had said, once Daniel returned to the planet, any negative effects from the virus would abate but it was taking a little too long for Jack's peace of mind. Still cursing, Jack pulled out his radio and switched over to a different channel—at Daniel's insistence, Lyssa had been given a radio and taught how to work it just in case something like this happened while they were away from the palace. Jack hit the button and asked Lyssa to pick up.

"_Colonel O'Neill?"_

Jack smiled. For all of the neat little gadgets this planet had, they didn't have handheld radios, and Lyssa sounded like a kid with a new toy. "Hi, Lyssa. Daniel collapsed while we were home so I brought him back through, but now I can't get him to wake up. How long will this unconsciousness last?"

"_Five to ten menas and a mena is comparable to your minutes. Is his face white?"_

Jack looked at him. "Very white. Why?"

"_He'll begin to wake up as color begins to come back to his face. You should start to see it in a moment or two."_

Jack looked and sure enough the slightest of slight pink tinges was building in Daniel's face. Still, he didn't look as if he were about to wake up any time soon.

"_I have sent some help for you, Colonel," _Lyssa said. _"They'll help you bring Dr. Jackson back here so he can be put to bed. He'll be tired for a while since a collapse always leads to fatigue."_

"Understood, and thanks," Jack said. "We'll talk some more once we get back."

Five minutes later the help had not arrived and Jack had improvised a bed for Daniel out of branches from a tree that was as near as no nevermind to a pine and his jacket. Jack was just debating whether he should use his BDU overshirt as an extra blanket when the Gate began dialing. A minute later and Teal'c, Carter, General Hammond, and Janet Frasier were there.

"General! Doc!" Jack said, surprised. "Nice to see you! What are you doing here?"

"Dr. Frasier and I are here to speak to the Rulers and to this Physician Shea in the hope that we can figure this whole situation out," Hammond said. "And before you ask, the President knows I am offworld. How is Dr. Jackson?"

Jack looked at him. "Believe it or not, sir, but he's looking better. I'd prefer him awake, though."

"So would I," Janet said, checking Daniel's vitals. "Heart rate's back to normal, thank goodness, and his body temperature is normal. He appears to be deeply asleep."

"Can you wake him up?" Jack asked.

"I think we'll just have to wait," Janet said as she lifted one of Daniel's eyelids to examine his eyes. "There doesn't seem to be anything I can do right now."

Jack nodded. "Carter? Teal'c? Did you get everything on your list?"

"Every last blessed thing," Carter said, rotating her shoulders and glaring at the pack by her feet. "I know Daniel works out of books, but why did they have to make those books so blasted heavy?"

"I believe it is well that the Tau'ri do not use stone tablets for writing," Teal'c said, still holding the box he'd carried through the Gate.

"Way to look on the bright side, Teal'c."

"Thank you, O'Neill."

"Jaaaack?"

"Looks like Sleeping Beauty's awake," Jack said, hurrying to Daniel's side. "How ya feeling?"

"Ugh," Daniel said, turning his head. "Janet, could you stop shining that light into my eyes?"

"I'd be done sooner if you'd hold your head still," she admonished, and Daniel complied. "There. Your sight looks okay, thank goodness, and your tracking's fine. How are you feeling?"

"Tired. I really don't want to move."

"Well, Lyssa's sent us some help, so we'll get you back to the palace and into bed shortly," Jack promised him. "Just as soon as that help gets here."

Daniel nodded and closed his eyes, apparently too tired to do anything else but sleep. The help--several orderlies Jack recognized from the palace--arrived shortly afterward with a floating stretcher and Daniel didn't even react as he was loaded onto the stretcher and…well, floated…out of the clearing and through the woods towards the palace.

"I'd love to know how those things work," Carter said, lugging the pack of books through the trees and eyeing the stretcher greedily.

"I'm sure Lyssa can arrange for you to take one apart, Carter," Jack said, smiling. "Look, hand me that pack. I'll spell you."

"Oh, thank you, sir," she said fervently as she handed off the pack. "I thought my spine would telescope."

_She has a point,_ Jack thought as he pulled the pack onto his back. The thing was heavy, far heavier than the service packs they were all used to carrying. Was it books or cinder blocks that were inside it?

It didn't take them long to get out of the woods and to the vehicles that were waiting. The help Lyssa had sent got into one car, settled Daniel in the back, and then made room for Jack when he insisted on staying with Daniel. The rest of the people from Earth settled into the other car (Hammond found the fact that the cars piloted themselves vastly entertaining) and waited patiently until they arrived at the palace. Then, Daniel was taken inside with all of his friends trailing behind, like ducklings following a mother duck. Shea met them at Daniel's room and ran up to the stretcher to start checking him over.

"I thought you said that Daniel would have at least three hours before he started feeling bad," Jack said by way of greeting. "He had only two."

"Sometimes it varies, especially early in the case," Shea said.

"Why didn't you tell us that before we left?" Jack demanded.

"Isn't it a little late to start arguing about that now?" Shea said as the orderlies escorting the stretcher transferred Daniel to his bed.

"No!" Jack insisted.

"Then we'll argue later," Shea said firmly. "I have a patient."

"_We_ have a patient," Janet said, stepping forward. "I'm Dr. Janet Frasier, and I'm Daniel's regular doctor. I'll be here to observe him and this disease in the hope of determining a treatment."

"Welcome," Shea said shortly as he examined Daniel. "Hmm. About like I expected."

Janet raised an eyebrow. "_What_ is about like you expected?"

Shea stood up and stepped away from Daniel's bed. "His condition, doctor. He has severe fatigue, which will slowly abate over the rest of the day and tonight and later when he wakes up he'll be extremely hungry. He may have a bit of a headache, muscle weakness, aches and pains in his joints, but the main symptoms will be fatigue and hunger."

Janet looked ready to kill something. "Why on earth didn't you include this in that information you gave Daniel about this virus?"

"Why on _what_?" Shea repeated, confused.

"It's a phrase we use," Sam explained. "It's sort of like saying that there has to be a reason on the planet why you did something, and if it isn't one of those reasons, then it's impossible or improbable."

"It's just a saying," Jack added. "Will Daniel be okay?"

"He'll be fine with plenty of sleep and food," Shea assured him. "His vitals are back to their normal levels and color is coming back into his face. He's sleeping peacefully. He'll be fine in the morning or sooner than that if his recuperative abilities are good."

"Good," Janet said. "Physician, I need to learn as much about this as I can, so I would like to have all the information about that virus you have at your disposal. _Now_."

Shea walked around the bed to where Janet stood, and as the tall physician stood next to her, her petite height became all the more apparent. "That's a considerable amount of information, doctor, and countless physicians over the years have gone over it. What makes you think you'll learn anything we haven't already learned? There is no cure for this virus."

_Jerk,_ Sam thought. _Condescending, mealy-mouthed, stuffed-shirt, puffed-up toad of a jerk! I'd like to play croquet with his head. Who does he think he is?_

"You underestimate Dr. Frasier, Physician Shea," Hammond said quietly. "She's already diagnosed and successfully treated many offworld diseases with which we've come into contact. She is more than equal to the task at hand."

Shea nodded. "Then I'll see to it that you have copies of all the texts devoted to the virus when you return to your world," he said coldly.

"Thank you," Janet said, just as coldly. Jack found himself hoping that the two doctors wouldn't kill each other in the process of trying to help Daniel.

--

The sun was just coming peeking up over the horizon when Daniel rolled over in bed and opened his eyes. He was tired, his joints ached, he was thirsty, and oh, so very hungry. Still, he didn't feel too bad, which was a definite improvement. He sat up and got quite a shock when he saw the members of SG-1 around his bed, either curled up in or draped over chairs. "Guys?"

Jack had been sprawled across his chair, arms, legs, and head dangling, and his head came up with an almost audible creak. "Daniel?" In the next moment Jack was on his feet and trying to look him over. "Danny-boy! How ya feeling?"

"Hungry," Daniel said truthfully. "Really hungry."

"Then I'll send for some breakfast. Sit tight."

Daniel sat tight while Jack pulled the cord that summoned the servants. One came after a few minutes and Jack asked for a really big breakfast for all of them, as well as a large teapot full of hot water. While they waited, Daniel managed to get into the bathroom under his own steam and returned about five minutes later, freshly washed and in clean clothes. "Now I feel human."

"That's good," Jack said, smiling. "How much do you remember from yesterday?"

"I remember feeling really sick and then hearing you yelling," Daniel said thoughtfully. "What happened?"

"Turns out your toleration for being offworld wasn't as high as Shea originally thought," Jack explained. "We brought you back, along with Dr. Frasier and General Hammond. He was here to talk to Stane and Mara while the Napoleonic powermonger is here to work with Shea to figure this thing out."

Daniel imagined the first meeting between Shea and Janet and winced. "Did she kill him?"

"No, she decided to maim him first. He's off licking his wounds right now and she's in the library reading up on this thing, or at least she was last night. She might be asleep by now."

Daniel looked at the kel'no'reeming Teal'c and the still sacked-out Carter. "You know, you guys didn't need to stay with me. I would have been fine and I bet your beds would have been a lot more comfortable."

"We'd probably have been too worried about you to sleep if we left," Jack told him.

At that point, Sam tried to roll over in her chair nest and ended up on the floor. She lay there for a moment, surprised, and then sat up, looking around. She spotted the two men and gave a sleepy smile. "Daniel? How are you feeling?"

"Much better, thanks," Daniel said truthfully. "How are you?"

"Hmmm," she said, not really quite awake. " 'Mokay."

"Carter, why don't you go make yourself feel human?" Jack suggested. "Breakfast is on its way."

Sam picked herself up, grabbed her pack, and wove her way into the bathroom, blinking sleepily.

"I love it when women are like that in the morning," Jack chuckled. "Especially when they're not quite awake. Was Sha're ever like that?"

Daniel smiled fondly at the memory. "Oh, yeah. Usually I was the first one really awake in the morning and it was so nice to watch her wake up. She always looked so sweet and huggable. Mind you, on the rare occasions when she beat me to full wakefulness she said the same thing about me. I figure it's something all couples share."

Jack smiled, remembering. "Yeah."

Sam wandered back in, still looking sleepy. "Morning."

"Hi, Sam," Daniel said. "Feel better?"

"Hmm."

Breakfast arrived then, making Teal'c wake up. Shamelessly Jack plundered the Daniel Care Package and brought out one of the packages of coffee and a handy little contraption that enabled offworld teams to make their favorite morning beverage. Sam seemed to perk up at the smell of the coffee and slowly woke up while she downed a cup.

As Shea had said, Daniel was starving-hungry and the kitchen had been notified that he would need large meals that day. The breakfast they'd sent up was nothing short of a feast and he and SG-1 set to it with good appetites.

"What about Janet?" Daniel asked, halfway through his first helping of everything.

"She said she'd send for a meal when she got hungry; she's not to be disturbed for anything short of an emergency," Sam told him. "She's studying all those texts that Shea sent her."

"Texts about the virus?"

"Yep."

Daniel reflected on how much this society reveled in knowledge and how much writing they seemed to do and felt distinctly sorry for Janet. "What did she do to Shea to get that information? I asked him when I first got sick for some information and all he did was assure me that the problem was being examined."

"She glared at him and told him that she was your regular doctor," Jack chuckled.

"And she used her most formidable tone of voice," Teal'c added. "I have seen Dr. Frasier match herself against seasoned Jaffa warriors. Physician Shea stood no chance."

"I'd like to have seen that," Daniel said, taking seconds on something that tasted a lot like hashbrowns. "Mmm. This is good."

"Shea said you'd be really hungry today, so you eat as much as you want," Jack said. "We can always order more."

"Why would I be really hungry?"

Jack thought about it. "You know, Shea never did answer that question. He just said that you'll be really hungry and tired today."

Sam snorted. There was no other word for it. "Shea just loves to dole out information in little driblets. I guess it makes him feel powerful."

"Well, it really just makes him seem like a…well, a pain in the mik'ta."

Daniel laughed at Jack's joke and had to cough to keep himself from choking. "Yeah, I'd say that about sums him up pretty well. I didn't like him when I met him."

Breakfast continued with Daniel putting away a massive amount of food. He finally finished eating and sat back in his chair with a cup of coffee, sighing happily. "You guys brought my favorite type of coffee? Thanks!"

"Teal'c and I assembled a whole care package since you can't spend very much time at home," Sam said, grinning. "We included coffee, your laptop, disks and your USB, writing pads, a box of pens and pencils, batteries…"

"Chocolate walnut cookies, chocolate bars, power bars, your tape recorder, some boxes of cassette tapes, extra eyeglasses, your contacts…"

"As well as a kit of various tools and items for the well-equipped archeologist and peaceful explorer," Sam finished. "You'll be able to do most of your work without a problem."

"Thanks, guys," Daniel said fervently. "I was afraid all that work would pile up while I was gone."

"Oh, don't worry about that," Jack assured him. "Hammond's already set up a schedule so we and your little underlings at the base can bring you work and whatever you need."

"What about Janet?" Daniel asked. "How long will she be staying?"

"The general's given her a week to learn all she can about this virus before he calls her home," Sam said. "She gave me an outline of everything she plans to do this week, and she's going to be very, very busy. Stane and Mara have already promised to give her all the support she needs, much to Shea's displeasure."

Jack snickered. "Oh, that was a treat to see, too. The look on his face!" Jack imitated it and set the whole table laughing.

"So, what will she be doing?" Daniel asked once he got his breath back.

"Studying the texts on the virus, examining blood samples from the inhabitants, trying to examine the little sucker and getting its parts figured out, figuring out how it's spread and proliferates…that's all I remember," Sam said apologetically. "It was kind of late last night when she told me."

"Ah, I'll ask her later," Daniel said, shrugging. "I figure that if I have this thing I should learn all I can about it, too."

"That's a good idea," Janet said sleepily as she entered. Her hair was coming down out of its knot, purple shadows were under her eyes, and she looked as if she needed another couple hours of sleep. "I'll give you my notes to look over."

"Thanks," Daniel said as Jack took pity on the poor woman and poured her a cup of coffee.

"Oh, thank you," she said as she accepted the cup. "I need that."

"How goes the reading?" Jack asked curiously.

"They have to be the most tiresomely verbose writers I've ever read," Janet said after taking a deep drink of coffee. "Lots of long, complicated sentences that tend to obfuscate rather than clarify. Lots of therefores and so forths and other things like that."

"Ungh," Jack said, his distaste plain.

"I'd be willing to take a crack at those texts if you don't mind, Janet," Daniel said.

She looked at him before smiling, her face going from clouds to sunshine. "Would you? Oh, thank you! I'm going to need all the help I can get!"

"Well, his research skills are legendary," Jack commented. "I think you guys will figure this whole thing out in…um, three days."

"Jack, you're wildly optimistic."

"And I know my team," Jack said firmly. "Carter, you've already offered your research abilities, and with Danny along, you guys will have this thing done in no time. There is not a puzzle out there that has yet to beat you."

"Jack, please don't tempt the Fates into proving us wrong," Daniel begged. "Let's just give it our best shot and hope it all goes well."

--

"You'll call us if you need anything, right?" Janet said as they headed toward the Gate a week later.

"Of course," Daniel told her. "I know the number."

"Anything means _anything,_ Danny," Jack said. "Got me?"

Daniel nodded. He would be in contact with the base at least every few days but he was under orders to call the SGC if anything unusual happened—even if something didn't seem important, he was to call. He might be stranded on this planet but he wouldn't be abandoned in any way. Only if it was an absolute emergency was he to go through the Gate, and Jack had already said, for his peace of mind, there had better be none.

"Okay, take care, take in some scenery, write home, don't forget your sunscreen," Jack said as Carter dialed the Gate. "And remember--!"

"I'll call home in case anything happens," Daniel promised.

"And keep your journal," Janet admonished. Daniel's assignment was to keep a journal tracking his symptoms when Janet wasn't there. She would be coming once a week to examine him.

Daniel nodded. "I will. I'll miss you guys."

"We will miss you as well, Daniel Jackson," Teal'c said, grasping Daniel's hand. "Be well."

"Thanks."

Sam gave him a hug. "I can't believe we have to leave you here and go somewhere else without you."

"Ah, you can tell me all about it when I see you again," Daniel told her. "And I'll expect pictures and a souvenir!"

That won a reluctant little chuckle from her and she hugged him again. "Okay."

Daniel waved goodbye as they looked back from the event horizon and sighed after they had gone through and the wormhole had disengaged. He tried to tell himself it wouldn't be so bad. He'd caught this virus completely by accident--at least, it seemed that way--and he and the base were dealing with it. Still, it was hard not to be depressed. His friends were going off on new missions while he got to do a lot of deskwork. He'd miss the missions. Sighing again, he headed back through the woods to where the car waited so he could back to his waiting books. He wanted to keep researching the virus and maybe, just maybe, he'd find something.

--

It was late and SG-1 had orders to head home for the night, but he found Colonel O'Neill, Major Carter, and Teal'c all in Daniel's office looking like a pack of depressed puppies.

"SG-1?" he said as he stopped in the doorway. "It's way past time to go."

"It's just not fair," Jack said. "What did Daniel ever do to deserve everything that happens to him?"

"Nothing," Carter said, sighing.

Hammond had to fight down a smile. This flagship team of his was so close to one another that it was scary and more than a little touching. "Dr. Frasier is at work on the problem."

"Yeah, I know," Jack said. "It's just that...well, you know."

Hammond looked at the three of them. "Yes, I do know, but Daniel wouldn't want you to give up what you do just because he isn't here. Didn't he say he was expecting plenty of video, artifacts, log entries, and half-a-dozen other things to go over after you get back from your next mission?"

Jack let out a short bark of a laugh. "Oh, yeah. He did. He gave us a wish list about five miles long."

"I think it was closer to six miles, O'Neill."

"Yeah, I think you're right."

"Well, why don't you make sure his every wish comes true when you go through that Gate tomorrow?"

All three of them looked at him, their expressions warming.

"Thanks, sir," Jack said just as Carter and Teal'c echoed the sentiment.

"You're welcome. I'll see all of you in the morning."


	10. Chapter 10

Over the next week, Daniel established a routine for himself and stuck to it so he would not start brooding. The plan worked pretty well but he did not get as much work done as he would have liked. The reason for that was that suddenly he had a full social calendar. There were gatherings at the University he was invited to, gatherings in the city, and of course there were parties in the palace that he couldn't seem to avoid. These people were, after all, his hosts, and it would have been rude to refuse every invitation. Still, he wished that there were less of them. Sometimes he was so tired that he would fall into bed and sleep like a dead thing until well into the next morning. As a result, his work began to suffer and he would come back from a social engagement to some work that he'd left undone. After a while he figured out that he could still think about his current project and jot his observations down in a tiny notebook and put the finishing touches on his work once he got back to his room. It wasn't a perfect system, but at least it kept him up with his work and allowed him to sleep at night.

If it weren't for his periodic visits from the SGC and Lyssa, he'd have lost it. SG-1 would come periodically in between missions and bring him newspapers, magazines, books, and the latest SGC gossip. The best thing they brought him was, of course, their company. Seeing Jack, Sam, and Teal'c reminded him that there was a world outside of the parties and his books.

"So, how's it going?' Jack asked on their first visit.

"Since you guys have been gone I've attended three meetings and two social gatherings at the University, four tea parties at various places in town, three musical evenings, and five separate parties here at the palace. In between those I spend most of my time jotting things down and trying to get my work done. Sometimes Lyssa takes pity on me and gets me out of a party—I still don't know how she does it—and she helps me with my work. She's pretty good at doing research and keeping track of papers."

"Are those usual skills for a princess?" Jack asked.

"I've no idea," Daniel said as he thought about it. "I don't really know. I guess during the course of her studies she kind of learned how to do stuff like that. I mean, think about it: the whole planet values learning. There are plenty of people who are bound to know how to do those things."

"What are the parties like?" Sam asked eagerly. "C'mon, Daniel. Details!"

Daniel groaned. "I guess you want me to break them down for you and tell you what happened and who was there and what they were wearing and what was served for dinner, right?"

Sam grinned and nodded. "Exactly! Don't leave me hanging!"

Daniel smiled and shook his head. "I haven't really noticed any details other than they're hot and crowded and noisy and I can hardly wait for them to end."

"Oh, come on!" Sam said, disappointed. "You had to notice more than that!"

"A lot of politics," Daniel admitted. "A lot of handshakes and smiling. Not much more."

Sam sighed. "I think next time I'm going to attend one of the parties myself and take a camera."

"I'd gladly trade places," Daniel offered. "You can go to a party and I can go back to work."

Sam threw a pillow at him. The four of them were in his room, which was one of the few places where he could count on not being disturbed by anyone. If he were anywhere else in the palace he could count on at least five different people wanting to talk with him, and more were not unexpected. As long as he was in his room and the door was closed, he was left alone.

"Seriously," Jack said as the laughter subsided. "How is it really going?"

Daniel understood. "I'm not certain. I can't help but have the feeling that there's more to my being here than we're seeing."

Sam flopped into a chair. "I was afraid of that. Janet hasn't figured out much about this virus you have despite all that reading material Shea was good enough to give her, so it's not clear when we're going to get you out of here."

Teal'c looked thoughtful. "Have you seen anything new to support your suspicions, Daniel Jackson?"

Daniel shook his head. "I don't know, Teal'c. Nothing different ever happens, so I can't really say that anything's changed. I'm on another planet, so I can't say that the people's behavior is wrong when it might just be different. I guess it's just a gut feeling."

"Well, we've got an invitation out of nowhere that asks specifically for you, then we've got people who are crazy mad to meet you, and then we've got someone in your room in the middle of the night cutting a skin sample out of your arm…"

"But that was all explained," Daniel protested.

"How fully?" Jack countered. "I'm pretty sure they may have left something—or several somethings—out, Daniel. People have done that to us before."

"I know," Daniel told him. "It's just that we can't suspect _everybody_ of doing that, Jack."

Jack gave him a look but said nothing further about it. "Just keep your eyes and ears open, okay? I'll feel better if you do."

"Sure thing," Daniel promised.

He saw them back to the Gate the next morning with Lyssa tagging along, chatting happily with Sam. Daniel had a feeling that she'd never gotten to have actual _girl friends_ before and she was taking full advantage of Sam's friendly nature. Also, having Lyssa chat with her gave Sam all the gossip and description of parties that she wanted, so they both won in the situation. Once his friends had returned to Earth he and Lyssa headed back to the palace.

"I can't wait until she comes again," Lyssa said wistfully. "We didn't get a chance to talk very much."

Daniel remembered how they had talked when Sam had arrived, through dinner, that morning at breakfast, and then during their walk back to the Gate and fought down a smile. "You like talking with Sam?"

"She's fun!" Lyssa said, confirming his suspicions. "And she's willing to talk with me like I'm a normal person, like I'm just Lyssa. Very few people are willing to do that."

"Is being Daughter to the Rulers an important job?" Daniel asked. He'd asked several people but none of them had given him very clear explanations just what Lyssa's position was. He had a feeling he could ask her and hear the truth without any prevarications.

"It is," she admitted. "I will be the one to take over for Mother and Father once I come of age."

"How close are you to that?" She seemed only a few years younger than he was, so what was of age on this planet?

"Next year. Thirty-four is considered the age at which one is able to take the throne since by that time one has completed several years of special study," she said. "Also, thirty-four is a number with much mathematical significance to us."

"How so?" Daniel asked. He knew it was part of the Fibonacci sequence--the same sequence used to encode his invitation--but beyond that he didn't know much about numbers.

"It is the smallest number with the property that it and its neighbors have the same number of divisors," she told him. "Also, it represents the sum of the decades you've lived. It represents stability and maturity. One and two decades are three, and one more is four. Thirty-four. See?"

"I do see," Daniel admitted, smiling. "I'd had no idea that math was this important."

"Mostly it is. You now know how old I am; may I ask how old you are?"

Daniel fought down a smile. "I just turned thirty-four."

She saw the humor in the situation immediately and fought down a chuckle. "I see. Is thirty-four an important age in your society?"

"Not really," Daniel said. "Fifteen, sixteen, eighteen, and twenty-one are really the important ages in early life."

"Why?"

"One of our cultures in America feel fifteen is the age when one is an adult, especially when the person is a young woman. In the larger culture, sixteen is the year you can begin to drive a car, which is regarded as something like a rite of passage. Eighteen is the year you're legally considered an adult and you can take part in politics and vote. Twenty-one is the age you can drink alcohol."

She laughed. "Is alcohol so important then?"

"To some, it is," he confessed. "Especially to kids who can't wait to try alcohol."

When SG-1 or staff from the SGC did not visit, Daniel had other visitors. Teachers and Learned Ones from the University came to talk to him about his planet--he described it only in the most general terms--and to seek his opinion on lectures he'd attended. Other times people brought him books to read or they came just to see how he was. Martiis sometimes came and he brought things that Daniel came to appreciate: magazines and newspapers. He was always glad to find other planets that had such a driving need for news.

Whenever he didn't have visitors he diverted himself with his work and with prowling the enormous library. The Rulers had invited him to wander the palace at his will, so he took them at their word and wandered, sketching down the architecture. The building was interesting: It was built in a style that resembled Japanese architecture with a dash of Morrocan flair thrown in. The whole effect was calming and very pleasing and once he devoted a final afternoon sketching one of the open galleries. When the time came for him to leave he would have quite a lot of material assembled on the University and its world.

He returned from one such sketching venture to find his room crowded with several people and a great deal of...things. The scene was controlled chaos being conducted by a twitchy beanpole of a man with an over-the-top attitude and hands that could not stay still, flying about as if they had minds of their own. Daniel gaped for a moment before rallying his wits. He had to find out what was going on. "Um, hello," he said, approaching the man. "May I ask what you're doing in my room?"

"_There_ you are!" the man said brightly. "I just sent someone out to look for you! Now that you're here, we can start, isn't that perfect! I'm going to need you over here," he said, grabbing Daniel by his shoulders and physically maneuvering him into place. "Good! Now, you go ahead and take off your shirt."

Daniel stared at him. Was this some sort of ritual that no one had thought to warn him about? His mind could come up with any number of unpleasant possibilities and he began to feel very, very nervous. "Um, why?"

The man looked at him as if he were daft. "So you can be measured, of course!"

Daniel stared around the room, trying to find some sort of visible clue so he would know what this guy meant. "For _what_?"

The man made an exasperated sound and snatched a large book off a nearby table. Inside it were designer's sketches showing outfit after outfit of clothes. "For clothing, of course. I have been asked by the Rulers to assemble a proper wardrobe for you. You can't keep wearing the few outfits you have."

Daniel thought about the wardrobe and dresser full of clothes and wondered what a well-stocked wardrobe would be like if his present one wasn't it. "I have plenty of clothes," Daniel tried to point out.

"Nonsense!" the man said. "Now, you just trust yourself in my hands, Learned One. When I am finished with you, you won't recognize yourself and you can say to everyone 'Narys made this.'"

For the next several hours, Daniel endured being measured, having swatches of fabric held up against him to check color suitability for his complexion by Narys' many assistants, and listening to Narys extol the virtues of this type of fabric, that color, this line, those trims, this style, and enough sartorial details that could swamp any fashionista. Also, the fact that he was standing half-naked in front of this guy who clearly found guys appealing (and called him as cute as bewysh, whatever that was) did not do much for his state of mind. It wasn't until Narys mentioned Thelan, his partner in work and life who would assemble the clothes, that Daniel felt himself relax.

"All finished," Narys said grandly, handing Daniel his shirt. "Not to worry, though, you will have clothes as soon as the first are done, and that will be by tomorrow morning. In the meantime, you'll just have to make do, all right?"

"All right, and thank you for going through so much trouble for me," Daniel said, grateful to be set free from Narys' clutches.

"Oh, not at all," Narys assured him, beaming brightly. "I can't wait to assemble a spring wardrobe for you, Learned One. I'll see you soon!"

Once Narys and all his paraphenalia and assistants were gone Daniel straightened his shirt, pulled on some shoes (Narys had also measured his feet) and went to find Lyssa. Hopefully she would be able to convince her parents that new clothes weren't really necessary. He checked all the places he usually found her before heading to her room. He'd only wallked her there once or twice, and he hoped that she would be there now. He knocked on the door and a maid opened it, looking surprised to see him. "It is Learned One Daniel Jackson, my lady," she said, escorting Daniel into the room beyond.

Lyssa looked up from several papers and breathed what had to be a sigh of relief. "Hello, Daniel. How are you?"

"Oh, just fine, but I've had a visitor for a couple hours now. Are you familiar with Narys?"

Lyssa put a hand over her mouth to hide a smile. "Oh, dear. You poor thing! Was he there to assemble a proper wardrobe for you?"

"Those were his words exactly," Daniel confirmed. "He said that the Rulers had asked him to do it."

Lyssa shook her head and sighed, this time in annoyance. "I told them you felt you didn't need any more clothes, but they wouldn't listen. Besides, Narys is their personal friend and he was practically salivating to get his hands on you so you could be measured and he could start sketching. He designs all of our clothes and I suppose Mother and Father felt you should receive the same attention since you're our guest."

"Is there any way to stop him?" Daniel asked hopefully.

"Not if he's already started sketching."

"Darn."

Lyssa nodded and set some papers aside. "Daniel, would you like to go for a walk with me? I've been inside all day and I'm going mad without light and fresh air."

Daniel felt the tension in his body marginally relax. "That would be great."

He and Lyssa walked outside in the gardens, chatting about nothing in particular until dinner time. Since this was one of those rare nights when neither one of them had a social engagement Daniel invited her back to his room for a meal and perhaps a game of chess. He'd taught her the Earth version of the game and she loved it, so she pounced on his offer before he could think to take it back or decide that there was something else she'd rather do. They played not one game but four, and they accompanied the games with a good bit of wine that tasted ambrosial. Lyssa left around midnight insisting she was perfectly fine and Daniel got himself to bed, hoping that neither one of them would have a hangover in the morning.

He didn't see Lyssa until lunch, and from the dark shadows under her eyes and her tired but elated expression, she was enjoying what had to be a hangover. She looked a little bleary and Daniel took her aside after the meal to see if she was all right.

"I'm fabulous!" she assured him. "It was a lot of fun being that drunk!"

"And you don't mind having a hangover?"

She thought about it. "Well, I'm not going to make it into a habit, but it is fun to get a little tipsy and laugh at how silly you're being. Don't worry, I'm just fine. Could we do it again sometime soon?"

Daniel had to fight down laughter. Oh, the Rulers were going to be so mad at him for corrupting their daughter! He was still chuckling about it later that afternoon as he headed toward the Gate to greet his friends for their scheduled visit.


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

As the wormhole disengaged behind him Jack paused and stared at his friend. "Well. This is new."

Daniel looked perplexed and glanced around trying to see what Jack was talking about. "What?"

"Nice threads, Danny-boy," Jack grinned, fighting down an unholy urge to snap a picture. He never thought he'd see Daniel in a color like…that! What was it? Chartreuse? Teal? Aquamarine? It was certainly bright and very eye-catching.

Daniel groaned. "Could we not talk about my clothes, please?"

Teal'c raised an eyebrow while Sam looked like she was fighting down incipient hysteria. "Daniel? What happened?"

"Narys happened," Daniel told her, sounding profoundly annoyed. "He's a personal friend to the Rulers and they felt I needed new clothes. He designed them."

Jack looked Daniel up and down. "Uh-huh. Did you choose that outfit or did someone else do that?"

Daniel's annoyance level looked as if it just went through the ceiling. "No, I didn't choose it, one of the valets did. For some reason, I suddenly have two valets in addition to a new wardrobe. I went back to my room after lunch and there they were, wanting me to try on the couple of outfits that were ready for me. Only the fact that you three were coming and I didn't want to be late kept me from killing them."

Sam's eyebrows shot up toward her hair at Mach speed. Daniel was suggesting violence? He must be really, really annoyed. "For what it's worth, I think that's a good color on you, Daniel," she offered.

"Thanks, Sam. How are things back at the SGC?" he asked, a blatant attempt to change the subject.

"About the same," Jack admitted. "We brought you a care package."

The words _care package_ perked Daniel up right away. "You did? Oh, thankyouthankyouthankyou!"

Jack chuckled and handed him the duffel bag containing all of the archeologist goodies they'd been able to assemble. All three of them enjoyed watching him sit down to root through it and they really enjoyed his reactions to the things he found. "Oh! More coffee, thank you soooo much; I really needed that! Oh, and another two notebooks, those'll come in handy. You brought those concordances I needed, thank you a thousand times and…did you guys raid the commissary of all their chocolate walnut cookies? Thanks! And some more CDs and batteries, thanks, I was hoping for some more music. Oh, and you brought me some 5th Avenues, yes!"

_A thirty-something year-old archeologist acting like it's Christmas,_ Jack thought indulgently. _That never gets old._

"Oh, this is wonderful," Daniel said fervently, thanks ringing in every tone of his voice. "Thanks, guys."

"It was no problem, Daniel Jackson," Teal'c said. "Are you more kindly disposed toward your fellow creatures now?"

"Immeasurably," Daniel affirmed, getting to his feet. "Thanks. Ready to go?"

"More than," Jack said, much happier now that Daniel's crankiness had passed. "We have a commission or two to carry out for Doc, but after that, we can hang out as much as we want."

"What does Janet want us to do?"

"She just wants some answers from Shea, that's all," Jack said. "I didn't understand half of it but she's got her questions written down, thank God. I don't think I could try to repeat all that."

Daniel pulled the strap of the duffel over his shoulder and joined his friends for the hike back to the waiting car. "Questions about what? The virus?"

"Something about its life cycle," Sam told him. "I managed to glean that much from what she told the colonel and the general and she sounded really excited about it."

"Really?" Daniel said, beginning to sound excited. "Do you think she might have found something?"

"I hope so," Jack said. "Not to rain on anyone's parade, but people in Washington are starting to make noise about you being here. They're saying that since you're out here you're a liability to security. It's been strongly suggested that we lock this address and your codes out of our computer. You know, being out in space makes you vulnerable to the Goa'uld and all that and they'd just love to get their hands on you."

Daniel shuddered. "The Goa'uld don't know where I am, though."

"That doesn't matter to politicians," Jack reminded him.

"Well, let's hope that Janet has actually found something and Daniel can come home soon," Carter said optimistically. "If we need to make contingency plans, we can make them _later_. Is there a party tonight?"

Daniel stared at her in dismay. "Oh, God, I hope not."

"Ooh, I hope there is," Sam said, sounding excited. "Lyssa said that she had this dress she wanted me to try on!"

"Oy," Jack breathed to Teal'c as Daniel and Sam walked ahead of them with Sam chattering away and Daniel looking slightly bemused. "Girl talk. I hope we find Lyssa soon so we can escape."

--

Janet leaned back in her chair and felt a smile spreading over her face. After days and weeks of work, she was certain she had it and no thanks to Shea, that unbelievable old stuffed shirt of a... Well, she didn't know a name bad enough to call him. No matter how hard she'd worked on this problem, she had a strong suspicion that Shea had been working twice as hard to keep her from solving it. His answers were evasive and the texts he'd given her, even with Sam and Daniel's help, had been verbose to the point of obfuscation. Still, in spite of that offworld idiot, she'd made a breakthrough.

What Daniel had was not a virus. It mimicked a virus in the way it looked and behaved, but it was all wrong for a virus. There wasn't even a chance that this could be an example of an offworld virus. Oh, no. This was something else entirely. Viruses consisted of either a single or double strand of nucleic acids surrounded by a protein coat and they reproduced by invading host cells and using the cells' materials and food to replicate copies of themselves. A virus was active only when replicating and there were only so many types of structures it could have. Viruses were not cellular and had no enzyme system, and survival outside of a host was not possible for them.

The organism in Daniel was not a virus; it was some type of symbiote. Thank heaven it did not seem bent on domination like the Goa'uld; it just seemed content to exist. She'd managed to isolate three separate "genders" or "types" of the organism and the presence of each was necessary for reproduction, rather than just one like with viruses. It was able to use any type of nutrient for food--both good and bad substances--and it actually performed maintenance on a host's body by acting as an extra layer of immunity and health. It healed injury and kept small "glitches" in a system from becoming problems. It could survive in any part of the body. The whole organism was astonishing and she'd just spent the last few days examining it. The thing actually spent time _nurturing_ its young and seemed to be actively _teaching_ it. She'd seen evidence of this firsthand when she'd supplied a damaged red blood cell near a group of the three parents and their young. Somehow the remarkable little creatures managed to repair it, although how they'd managed that and where they'd gotten the required proteins they needed to repair it was beyond her.

There was just one thing she was having trouble with: If these things were intelligent, was it possible to communicate with them and ask them to leave Daniel's body? If they were intelligent, would she be right in testing several drugs on the samples she had to see which medicine would be an effective treatment against them? They seemed intelligent; they were capable of teaching and learning and the responded to stimuli and changes in their environment, but were they intelligent enough to communicate and understand someone who was not one of them? Still a little buoyant at her discovery and more than a little worried about what this would mean for Daniel, she picked up the phone and dialled the general.

--

They didn't track Shea down that night because to Sam's delight, there was a party scheduled. She wore the dress Lyssa had wanted her to try on and she spent the entire afternoon with Lyssa in her rooms, fussing with hair and makeup and jewelry to her heart's content.

"That's the problem about working with people who are mostly men," Sam said as she and Lyssa put the finishing touches on their outfits. "Aside from Janet there's hardly ever anyone I can just be friends with and do girl things with, and she and I are both so busy."

"You are friends with Daniel, aren't you?" Lyssa asked, fastening a necklace around her neck.

"It's more like we're sister and brother, and brothers don't really like to do the whole hair and makeup thing," Sam clarified. "I mean, could you see Daniel and I draped over a couch playing with one another's hair and doing each other's makeup and trying on clothes and jewelry?"

The image sent Lyssa off into a peal of hysterical giggles. "No, I can't imagine it, but I'd love to see it! What a sight that would be!"

Lyssa's giggles sent Sam off into her own fit of laughter and the both of them collapsed onto a nearby easy chair, laughing so hard the chair shook. A full five minutes passed before either of them were able to breathe and every now and then an errant giggle escaped as they set themselves to rights.

They met up with the men soon afterward and all three men were left wondering just what it was that the two women had been talking about before they showed up. They kept looking as if they were trying very hard not to laugh.

"Breathe," Jack heard Lyssa whisper to Sam as she gave a sudden giggle, and then they were both at it.

"I don't want to know," Jack told Daniel.

"No, we probably don't," Daniel agreed.

"It is best not to inquire into a lady's secrets," Teal'c added.

As they arrived at the party SG-1 was met by the Rulers, who declared how happy they were to see them and how they hoped that they would stay a while.

"Oh, we'd love to, but we're only here until tomorrow night," Jack said regretfully. He hated the fact that they weren't able to spend more time with Daniel. He still didn't trust this place and Daniel usually required a guard of two or three (ie, SG-1) to keep him out of trouble.

"Well then, you must come back soon," Stane told him. "You have a standing invitation, so you must not let reserve keep you from coming!"

"We're looking forward to it," Jack said, fighting the urge to scratch his neck. High collars were the fashion here and he found them highly irritating. Still, he had to admit that the whole outfit he was wearing looked pretty good. If he could wear this back to the SGC the nurses would swoon. More amusing was the fact that if they saw _Daniel_ in his party clothes the man would not be safe. His ensemble—that was the word the valets had used—was done in silver and blue and for some reason the tones of color in the fabric heightened his skin tone and almost made him glow. The tailored shirt, coat, pants, and fitted boots made him look like something out of a fairy tale.

Jack had no more time for reflection since he was immediately approached with a request to dance by one of the ladies. The dance didn't look too hard, so he accepted and he was stuck for the next hour or so going from partner to partner, trying to keep up with the dancing. He was deeply grateful when Lyssa took pity on him and asked him to go with her to get some refreshments.

"Your timing is impeccable," Jack told her. "How did you know I needed rescuing?"

"The almost-desperate-but-still-polite smile on your face," she told him. "You were dancing with Lady Cahra, and she's looking for husband number four."

Jack blanched. "Again, thank you."

"Not a problem. I like to do a good deed every now and then."

They'd just gotten something to drink when Lyssa spotted Daniel. "Uh-oh. We need to do a little rescue mission of our own. Wise One Ashtia has cornered Daniel."

"That's bad, right?"

"Very, very bad," she promised him. "She wants a husband—any husband—and no single man is safe. Come on."

It was a thing of beauty as she swept up to Ashtia and began chatting with her, distracting her and then pointing out that a certain Lord Marak was there and was looking lonely. Ashtia shot off like an arrow from a bow and Daniel breathed a deep sigh of relief. "Oh, thank you. I didn't know what to do."

"For future reference, if you see Ashtia, remember an urgent appointment as fast as you can and get away," Lyssa told him. "It's even better if you can distract her with someone else and slip away while she's not looking."

"Yeah, but don't you feel bad for throwing that other poor guy to the sharks like that?" Jack asked.

"Marak is one man who enjoys the attention of almost any woman," she said. "So no, I don't feel guilty. What are sharks?"

Jack left the two of them alone and found Carter, who was more than happy to accept his invitation to dance.

"Having fun?" Jack asked.

"Oh, yeah," Sam assured him. "I can't remember the last time I danced this much! I can't wait until the next party. I get to have my hair and makeup done and wear a nice dress and jewelry…"

"Well, you look great," Jack complimented her. "You really do."

"Thanks, sir," she said, smiling. She glanced over his shoulder and smiled. "Ooh, if you could see what I'm seeing!"

Jack turned them both around and looked but he didn't see anything remarkable. "What?"

"Daniel and Lyssa are dancing," Sam said almost gleefully.

Jack spotted them and chuckled. "He really likes her, doesn't he?"

"Yeah, poor guy," Sam said, sounding a little sad. "He's from offworld and she's a princess who's going to inherit her planet's throne."

"So what?" Jack wanted to know. "Sha're was the head priest's daughter and Daniel didn't even speak the language when he arrived on Abydos. That didn't stop the two of them from falling in love, did it?"

"I guess the surprise wedding kind of helped," Sam added, doing a little chuckling of her own.

"I think he might have done a little panicking once he realized what had happened," Jack said thoughtfully. "I'd have liked to have seen that."

That image made both of them laugh.

"Who's that with Teal'c?" Sam asked a moment later.

Jack looked. "Hoo, boy. Lady Cahra's found him. According to Lyssa, she's looking for husband number four."

Sam looked over at the woman speculatively. "Eh, he can take her. No worries."

"I hope not. I'd hate to have to go back to Earth and let General Hammond know that one of our staff will be bringing home yet another offworld wife."

Sam bit down a sudden yelp of laughter. "Like SG-14? Oh, those poor guys. They thought those women were emissaries from their people!"

"And next thing they know their BDUs are being mended and washed in the locker room sinks and all four women are fussing over them and demanding to know where they're supposed to cook dinner!"

"Daniel nearly died when he learned enough of their language to figure out what _arous_ meant," Sam recalled, her eyes bright with humor. "And then he had to tell the women that SG-14 had not meant to marry them at all…oh, that was a long day for him."

"It was a long day for all of us, Carter." Jack remembered that the situation had been so dire that all of SG-1 had been called in to help calm the women down. Janet and some of her nurses had shown up at some point to help Sam, banished the men from the room, and somehow got the women under control. Once the women were calm they had to return home with SG-14 so the marriages could be annulled (SG-14 almost hadn't made it back because the women had wanted to give them a memorable goodbye), but it had still been a difficult day. Still, the looks on the faces of SG-14 had almost been worth it when Daniel told them that _arous_ meant _wife_ and that the four women thought they had been married to SG-14 that morning.

"Well, let's just hope that Cahra doesn't propose," Sam said with a little laugh. "Poor Teal'c!"

"Let's not jinx ourselves, Carter."

"Heaven forbid."

The dancing continued and Jack was glad to see a few familiar faces in the crowd. They were mostly people from the University, like Martiis, but it was good to know that the party wasn't all high mucky-mucks. He tended to get into trouble when they were the only company available. He danced either with Carter or with Lyssa, and when he could get away with it, the older ladies or the younger girls who did not look like they were husband-hunting. It was the women around his age or just a decade younger or older that had him worried. He had finished a dance with an old lady who was getting a kick out of dancing with him. She was tiny and wrinkled and her head only reached his chest, but she was a pure spitfire. She cackled more than once at the idea of dancing with a younger man and she looked up at him once and said, "Maybe now my grandson won't feel embarrassed to dance with his grandma!" Jack was pleased to see that her grandson did dance with her later. He was just considering going to get something to drink when a bell started tolling overhead. Everyone paused, giving Jack the clue that this was something important.

He was right. The Rulers emerged from the crowd and moved up onto a dais and Lyssa followed them a second later. She bowed to her parents and gave them a shy smile before moving to stand to their right.

Stane held up his hands to get everyone's attention. "We wish to thank all of you for being here tonight. Good friends and good company make for a pleasant evening on such an auspicious date."

Jack really didn't understand why people were clapping and cheering. It hadn't been that good of a speech, and it didn't sound over.

He was right. Stane kept talking about the party, the wonderful company, and the whole shtick. Sam and Teal'c joined him while Stane was waxing eloquent on the balmy evening, but when he whispered an inquiry after Daniel's whereabouts, they both shook their heads to indicate they didn't know. Hmmm.

"I am certain that you all wish to know why we have interrupted the party in this manner," Stane said, sounding as if he were winding down to a finish.

Movement along the edge of the crowd drew Jack's attention. It was Daniel and one of the palace footmen and the poor footman looked as if he were trying to convince Daniel to go somewhere. Where were they going, though? They couldn't reach any of the doors from that direction...

Mara spoke up. "For some time now, it has been our priority to ensure that our daughter is prepared to become a Ruler. While we have done our best to educate her and guide her in her quest for knowledge, there are some things that we have not been able to teach. To fill that dearth, the University has stepped in to lend their aid. For that, we thank them."

_Get to the point, already,_ Jack thought, feeling his patience beginning to ebb. He could only take speeches for so long.

"And we are overjoyed to announce that the University has filled another need as well. As you well know, there can never be just one Ruler. There must always be two. Tonight, we are more than happy to tell all of you that a member of the University has been selected to become our daughter's husband."

_Well, congratulations to the poor guy,_ Jack thought. He'd hate to have those two for in-laws!

"Some of you may already know him. He is an intelligent, well-educated, highly-principled, and very compassionate man. He has lived through trials and tribulations that did not break him but refined and polished him. We are more than proud to welcome him to our family."

By this point people were looking so excited that Jack was certain they'd burst. Quite a few in the crowd were exchanging knowing looks as if they knew who this man was.

"We wish you all to welcome our future son-in-law," Mara said as a footman escorted someone up onto the dais. "May he and our daughter live long and rule well after we are gone."

The roof of the palace was almost blasted off at the cheer that erupted and in the hubbub Jack saw Lyssa take someone's hand and draw him close for a kiss. The guy looked pale and completely gob-smacked. Jack looked closely, wondering if the man were about to faint, but in the next moment he had to fight off a fainting feeling of his own. The man on the dais, holding the princess' hand and now being hugged by the king and queen, was Daniel! Jack watched in shock as the Rulers slipped matching silver bracelets on Daniel's and Lyssa's left wrists and then put a silver circlet on Daniel's head. If anything, the crowd went even more nuts.

"Sir?"

"Yeah, Carter?"

"I think it wasn't Teal'c I jinxed with an offworld wife."

"Nope. Hoo, boy. Can't wait to to talk to Daniel."

"What are we going to tell General Hammond, O'Neill?"

"I have no idea, Teal'c. Do you think Daniel suspected this?"

Teal'c looked at the scholar thoughtfully. "I do not."

"Gotta agree with you on that one," Jack said. "C'mon, let's go," he said, leading the way to one of the doors.

"Where are we going?" Sam asked, confused.

"We're gonna head back to Daniel's room and wait for him there. We need to talk to him without all these people around."


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12

The doors opened and the valets came in, followed closely by Daniel. They were trying to convince him to do something and his friends caught the last of what he was saying. "Thank you, but I'll be fine tonight on my own. Consider yourselves dismissed for the night."

"Thank you, sir," they both said as they bowed themselves out.

Daniel closed the door and leaned against it, breathing out a long sigh.

"Daniel?"

Daniel turned around and saw them. "I had _no_ idea; I swear!"

"Eh, that's what we thought," Jack said, noting how tense Daniel was.

"No, really, I had no idea," Daniel continued, just as if he hadn't heard Jack. He took off the circlet and tossed it on the bed and began pacing. "I had no way of knowing!"

"Daniel…" Jack said, but Daniel ran right over top of him.

"If I'd known, I would have gone straight back to Earth and to deepest Hades with the consequences! This is…"

"Daniel!"

Daniel stopped and looked at Jack. "What?"

"We know you didn't know," Jack said, putting a hand on Daniel's shoulder and leading him over to a chair. "Sit down. Take a deep breath."

Daniel fought to comply, his shoulders heaving as he took in air. "I don't believe this! You know, I love how the universe just dumps stuff like this in your lap! I mean, isn't it great? I get to get married!" He sank back into his chair, suddenly boneless and limp, and he groaned. "Why does this stuff happen to me?"

_Wow. Was that actually a complaint coming out of his mouth?_ Jack thought in surprise. _Daniel doesn't complain._

"Did they explain anything to you?" Sam asked.

Daniel rubbed his forehead as if he had a headache. "Yes. They said that of all the people they'd been considering for Lyssa, no one had quite the qualities they were looking for, but then I showed up. That was why they had someone take a skin sample from me, to make sure that if we had children, they would be healthy. Once that was given the green light, other plans went ahead. They said that it was never intended for me to catch this virus of theirs, but now I guess that it's just as well I've caught it."

"How long has Lyssa known?" Sam asked, feeling a sinking feeling in her stomach.

"It's tradition for the bride not to know until her parents announce it," Daniel said. "Trust me, she was surprised, but she told me that she's glad it was me. She likes me a lot better than some of the other people her parents were considering."

"And you explained to her how you guys can't get married?" Jack wanted to know.

"I did explain. More than once, actually. Both she and her parents had an answer for every objection I came up with, save one."

"And what one was that?" Teal'c asked.

"The fact that I don't want to get married!" Daniel groaned. "Somebody please zat me. Put me out of my misery."

"Don't," Jack said quickly as Teal'c reached for his zat. "He didn't mean it, Teal'c. So, even though you told them you don't want to get married, they're still making the wedding plans?"

Daniel gave him a look. "Of course they are. They wouldn't accept what I have to say and stop planning the wedding, would they? Of course not. It could never be that easy."

Woah. Spring one too many surprise weddings on Daniel and he became cranky. Well, that was certainly something to watch out for. "No, I guess it never could," Jack agreed. "And you can't leave the planet...hoo, boy. We're in trouble."

"I'm hearing wedding bells in my future, and you say _we're_ in trouble?" Daniel demanded. "You're not getting married, Jack!"

"And neither are you," Jack assured him. "Calm down. Of course I mean 'we' because 'we' are going to help you out of this situation, Danny-boy. Relax."

To their surprise, he actually relaxed a little. "Sorry I snapped, guys. Thanks."

"No problem," Jack said while Teal'c nodded and Carter gave Daniel a buddy hug. "We'll get you through this. Now, who do you think would be most likely to listen to reason?"

Daniel rubbed his forehead. "Maybe all three of them. I don't know where Lyssa is right now, but I think the Rulers are still in their sitting room talking. That's where I left them, anyway."

"Okay, that's where I'll start," Jack said. "Teal'c, you stay here with Daniel and keep him company. Help him calm down and in the meantime, if anyone comes, Dr. Jackson is indisposed. Carter, you track down Lyssa and talk to her girl-to-girl. Try to find out what she's thinking. We'll all report back here in three hours."

"Yes, sir," Sam said, heading for the door. "Bye!"

Jack stared after her. "She seemed...awfully happy to get that order," he said thoughtfully.

"It is a chance for girl talk, O'Neill," Teal'c reminded him.

"Oh. Yeah. Okay. I'm gonna go track down Their Majesties and try to talk to them. Daniel, you focus on chilling out. You need it."

Silence.

"I think he has fallen asleep, O'Neill."

"Well, leave him that way. Thanks, Teal'c."

"Of course, O'Neill."

--

It took Jack close to a half-hour to locate the Rulers (he kept getting lost), but he found them in their sitting room as Daniel had said, the two of them chatting away to one another. To his chagrin he heard them discussing wedding plans and they both sounded so happy that he felt a little sorry for coming to rain on their parade like this. A footman at the door spotted him and gave a bow. "Colonel."

"I would like to speak to the Rulers," Jack told him. "It's very important, and it cannot wait."

Seeing how serious he was, the footman nodded, knocked on the door, opened it when told to, and announced "Colonel Jack O'Neill."

"Come in, Colonel!" Mara said brightly. "You've heard the news?"

Jack decided to play innocent. "News?"

"Lyssa's and Daniel's engagement, of course!"

"Oh, yes. Yes, I've heard. Actually, that's what I came to talk to you about. Daniel has told you, hasn't he, why he can't get married?"

"Not _can't,_ but _doesn't want to_," Stane corrected him.

"Exactly," Jack said. "Well, he doesn't want to, but I'm getting the impression that you're going ahead with planning the wedding anyway?"

"Well, these events do take time to coordinate, Colonel," Mara said.

"And you're certain that by the time the wedding is planned and everything he'll have changed his mind about getting married?"

"That's almost certain," Stane assured him.

"Why?"

Stane looked at him. "Colonel?"

"Why is it almost certain he'll have changed his mind by then?"

"Have you seen the two of them together?" Mara asked. "Seen how they look at one another? He already cares for her."

"He may care for her, but that doesn't mean he wants to marry her," Jack pointed out.

"Whyever not?"

"Well, maybe it's because he hasn't gotten over losing his wife," Jack said.

Silence.

"Wh-what?" Mara stammered, surprised.

"Martiis knows, but I don't think he told you. Okay," Jack said. "I'm pretty sure that if he'd known you were planning on announcing the engagement, he would have told you. Daniel was married, and he saw her die in a fairly awful way a few years ago. It's been a few years, I know, but Daniel loved her very, very much. I don't think he's ready for any kind of relationship anytime soon."

Stane appeared to be thinking about this. "Isn't it also true that relationships can help people heal from grief?"

"I don't think this marriage would do that," Jack said hastily. "I really don't. All it will do is drive Daniel distracted. You guys can't insist on this." He was beginning to get worried. The mood in the room had changed from calm and receptive to mildly hostile all of a sudden and he had a feeling that they weren't going to listen.

"Colonel, why did you come to talk with us?" Mara wanted to know.

"Daniel's my friend, and he's already talked with you. According to what he said, you guys really didn't listen to his objections, so I decided to come and try to talk to you."

"Daniel's a grown man, colonel, and he doesn't need your help to make decisions."

"That's just it!" Jack said, his patience getting very thin. "He's already made his decision, but you guys aren't listening to what he wants!"

Stane smiled. "He doesn't know what he really wants," he said, sounding completely certain. "He just needs time to realize what it is."

"A marriage to your daughter?" Jack asked, feeling the whole operation going south.

"Exactly," Mara told him. "Colonel, I'm getting the feeling that you and your friends aren't happy about this situation. If you and the rest of SG-1 can't be happy for him, perhaps you shouldn't come to the wedding."

Jack couldn't believe what he was hearing. "Oh, don't worry. We won't be going anywhere, but we won't do anything like kicking up a rumpus, either. The...situation...does call for a bit of decorum."

"As long as you recall that, Colonel, we will still be happy to have you here."

Ohh, yeah, the whole operation was going south. Way, way south. Practically tropical. They were threatening to persona non grata SG-1. Wonderful. Just wonderful. They could easily have their access to Daniel cut off if any of them did anything that the Rulers didn't like and Jack had no idea how to fight that if they decided to make that threat real.

Oh, crap.

--

Sam approached Lyssa's rooms, wondering how to approach this. While she always enjoyed talking with her, she wasn't entirely sure how to talk about _this_ with her. She could just imagine it. _Oh, hi, Lyssa. Yeah, I wanted to talk to you about how you're planning to marry my friend when he really doesn't want to to marry you._ Yeah, that would go over really well. Couldn't be easier, in fact.

Yeah, right.

Steeling herself and trying to bolster her courage, Sam knocked on Lyssa's door. One of the maids opened it, announced her, and then left the two of them alone.

"Hello, Sam!" Lyssa said brightly, looking up from a large scrapbook. "I'm so glad you came!"

Sam blinked. "You are?"

Lyssa ran over to her and hugged her. "Of course! I need your help!"

There was something that she just wasn't getting. "Help with what?"

"I need your help with the wedding, of course!" Lyssa said, taking her hand and leading her over to the table where the scrapbook was. "Choosing colors, flowers, dresses, my dress, the menu, and most important of all, a wedding present for Daniel! I have no idea what to give him!"

"Oh, with Daniel, he's usually happy with a book."

"I want to get him something very special," Lyssa said, opening the scrapbook. "I was thinking about these colors for the wedding, though."

Sam forced herself to look at the book (Lyssa had excellent taste when it came to color, though) and made herself think. "Um, Lyssa? I think we need to talk a bit."

Lyssa looked up from the fabric samples she was examining. "About?"

"Well, I've just come from talking to Daniel, and he said that he tried to tell you no on getting married, but that neither you nor your parents would listen. Is that true?"

To Sam's surprise, Lyssa laughed. "Of course he would say no at first! Grooms always do, but by the time the wedding arrives they're just as eager to get married as the brides are!"

Oh, great. That's why they weren't listening to Daniel--a groom's initial refusal was expected in this culture, so no one ever took it seriously. Fabulous. That made her job so much easier, NOT. "This isn't a matter of form, Lyssa. Daniel was really saying no and I have a feeling that he'll still say no even on the day of the wedding."

That caught Lyssa's attention. "What do you mean?"

"I mean he said no and he doesn't understand why you wouldn't accept that, so I decided to come talk to you to see why. I understand now, but I think I should let you know that there's no such custom on our planet. When Daniel said no, he wasn't adhering to form. He _meant_ no."

Lyssa looked surprised, but she stayed calm. "I know that he cares for me, at least. Do you think he'll change his mind in a few months? Do you think it's possible?"

Sam had to answer honestly. "I don't know, Lyssa. I think that it would be good for Daniel if you and he were to become a couple because it's been quite a while since he's had anyone to care about in that way, but at the same time I'm not so sure."

"Why?"

Sam wondered if she should tell her or not, then decided that she needed all the ammunition she could use to help convince Lyssa to see things her way and to let Daniel off the hook. "Well, he lost his wife a few years ago."

Lyssa blinked. "Daniel never mentioned her."

"That's probably because her loss still hurts him. She was kidnapped and held prisoner by a race we'd come across on another planet, and Daniel searched for her for years. When he finally found her the only way to save her from her captor was to kill her, and she died right in front of him. He felt like he failed her. He didn't even have to tell me that; I could see it on his face. Since then, he's never really come close to having a close relationship with another woman. He and I are friends, like siblings, but that doesn't count."

"And you think that's why he said no? That he still mourns his wife and does not feel ready to become close to another yet?"

"Without looking inside his mind, that's as sure as I can be," Sam told her.

Lyssa got quiet, as if thinking very hard. "I see."

Sam waited, sure that Lyssa was about to say something else.

"I will think about what you've said. I promise you, Sam. I...didn't know, or I didn't want to let myself realize..." She stopped and seemed to think. "I will think about this. Very much."

Sam smiled, and because Lyssa looked so miserable, she gave her a hug. "Thank you, Lyssa."

--

Teal'c was amazed that Daniel Jackson had slept for so long without moving. Occasionally he shifted a little, but he didn't really _move_. He would be more worried if Daniel's face were flushed with fever, but he seemed fine.

So far.

Teal'c had shifted Daniel from the chair to his bed and covered him with a blanket. It was amazing how often Daniel got himself into difficult situations like this, but still, he didn't let the negative experiences sour his kind and understanding nature. That was part of what Teal'c liked about the intelligent Tau'ri--he learned from mistakes and experiences, but he never became bitter from the difficult or trying ones.

At the present moment, Teal'c wondered how the latest situation was affecting Daniel. He'd been proposed to several times during their journeying through the Stargate, but this was the first time he'd received a proposal from someone in a highly-advanced society. Teal'c didn't entirely trust the Rulers since they'd seemed to be doing everything without telling anyone about it. Shouldn't they have told Daniel Jackson about their wishes before announcing it in so public a fashion? It seemed they only gave information once it became crucial for them to give it, instead of freely sharing what others needed to know. Withholding information only made everyone else's tasks more difficult and it was hardly fair to Daniel.

"They're impossible," O'Neill muttered as he came in.

"O'Neill?"

"The Rulers," Jack explained. "I tried talking to them, but for them, this whole engagement thing is the best thing since sliced bread."

Teal'c considered that. "I see." He didn't, not really, but he figured that it was one of O'Neill's sayings that would make sense after he thought about it for a while. Perhaps.

Jack looked at Daniel. "Has Daniel woken up at all?"

"He has not," Teal'c admitted. "He seems exhausted."

"After all he's been through today, I'm not surprised."

The door opening drew their attention. Sam came in and closed it quietly behind her. "Hi. How's Daniel?"

"Dead to the world," Jack said, checking on Daniel again. "Report."

"I spoke with Lyssa, and I think the reason why none of them have listened to Daniel's refusal is because it's a cultural thing. From what Lyssa told me, it's actually expected for the groom to say no when he's told about the engagement, but it's purely for form's sake. They thought he was following form, rather than actually saying no."

"Oh," Jack said. "No wonder they were so..."

"Impossible?" Teal'c supplied.

"Exactly. What did Lyssa say, Carter?"

"Well, I told her about how such a custom didn't exist in our culture and how Daniel may still be mourning for Sha're. She was genuinely surprised and she promised she would think about everything I'd told her. How did your attempt do, sir?"

"I wish her parents were as half as reasonable as Lyssa," Jack said calmly. "I told them that Daniel had really, truly meant _no_ but they weren't too willing to listen. Then I told them about Sha're and how she'd died--I glossed over details, don't worry--and although they were surprised and sorry for Daniel, they suggested that this marriage might help him heal. Then they went on to say that if we can't be happy for him, maybe we shouldn't come to the wedding."

Carter looked shocked and Teal'c looked concerned. "Indeed?"

"Oh, indeed, buddy," Jack assured him. "I have a pretty good feeling that we came close to being PNG'd."

Teal'c gave him a look.

"Sorry," Jack said, sounding truly contrite. "It stands for persona non grata. That means a person isn't welcome somewhere."

"Hoo, boy. That was close," Sam said.

"Yeah."

"And it would be useless to try it."

All three of them stared at Daniel, who opened his eyes and sat up. "Hi."

"Hi," Sam said. "Did we wake you up?"

"No, I woke up on my own," he said. "I caught what you were saying about being persona non grata."

"And why would it be useless to try it?" Jack wanted to know. "They're the king and queen, Danny-boy."

"I want you guys here as often as you can be here. If they try to keep you away, then they'll have one very, very upset archeologist on their hands, and they really don't want that."

He sounded so grim and so determined that they were surprised.

"And how will you make sure that we're not PNG'd?" Sam asked.

"I may not be able to leave the planet, but that doesn't mean that I can't leave the palace and the University," Daniel said. "I can disappear into the bush for a while. According to Martiis, this is the only settlement on this world since everyone wants to be near the University. I remember you and Teal'c telling about how it seemed you couldn't leave the campus, but this place isn't really the campus. It's just outside, and we've left the campus plenty of times before. I'll just have to slip away when they aren't expecting it. I won't really feel bad about it when I do, except for not telling Lyssa."

"You won't?" Sam said, more than a little surprised. Daniel usually put himself through half-a-dozen guilt trips over stuff like this.

"No, I won't," he restated. "The Rulers haven't exactly been completely honest about things, even after they claimed to have given us answers. And have you noticed how they always answer questions after certain events have taken place? They've never told us what we needed to know beforehand, it was only afterwards that we got the information we needed. I'm really, really getting tired of that."

Jack, Sam, and Teal'c exchanged looks. Daniel sounded...well, pissed. He sounded as if he were ready to do something desperate. Worse than that, he sounded ready to lose it. None of them knew which was worse.

"You really _are_ fed up, aren't you?" Jack said, more than a little surprised.

Daniel nodded. "Oh, yeah."

Jack's theory about springing one too many surprise weddings on Daniel was beginning to bear fruit.

"Okay," Jack said. "I think we need to make plans. Hopefully, we won't have to use them, but it's better to be prepared. Let's start, campers."


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter 13

The next day Daniel was more than ready to disappear into the woods and forsake society for the rest of his life. He was woken up at some ungodly hour by his two valets (he still couldn't tell them apart even though they looked nothing alike) with a tray of spiced hot fruit juice and some toast in order to "give him something to start on," their words exactly.

"Start on?" Daniel echoed, not awake at all or even resembling something "alive." "Zombie" was closer, but the fact that he was a member of the living dead meant nothing to these two.

"You have a full schedule today," the dark-haired one told him. "You'll need something in your stomach until you're able to have breakfast."

Daniel grabbed his watch from the bedside table and stared at it. "You've gotta be kidding me. It's five-thirty! Not even _Jack_ gets up this early if he doesn't have to, and he's die-hard military!"

"If you stay in bed much longer you won't be able to accomplish everything you need to do today," the brown-haired guy told him.

Seeing that the two were immovable on this (and because they both looked more than capable of physically removing him from bed if they wanted to) Daniel glared at them, swallowed the juice, and bolted a piece of toast before getting out of bed. He wrapped up in his robe and stalked into the bathroom to wash up and take care of necessary things and by the time he finished he felt much more like himself. When he returned to his room he found that the valets had made his bed and had pulled an outfit from his wardrobe.

"Oh, absolutely not," he said when he saw it. "I do not need to wear something that makes me look like I'm going to a fancy-dress ball."

The dark-haired one looked shocked. "Then what will you wear?"

"I have some BDUs," Daniel said, going to his wardrobe and pawing through it. "I'll wear those."

Two minutes later and it became apparent that the BDUs were gone. Daniel whirled on the two men, ready to kill or at least maim them. "Where are my uniforms?!"

"Those garments were not suitable for a man about to become a prince," the brown-haired man told him calmly.

"I don't think you understand," Daniel said. "I am a member of the SGC and I'm required to wear a uniform offworld unless it's a diplomatic meeting or special occasion. As far as I know, today is _not_ a special occasion and I have to appear in uniform." When all else failed, it was easier to pull in something that sounded like a regulation. Besides, uniforms helped other SGC staff identify you while you were offworld. It was just easier to wear them.

"You are no longer just a member of the SGC," the dark-haired one informed him. "You are now the prince-elect. Your status has changed and your appearance must change accordingly. You don't want the people to think that their sovereigns are too niggardly to clothe their future son-in-law properly, do you?"

Daniel stared at the outfit lying on the bed. "_This _goes far beyond 'proper.' It goes straight to ostentatious and is in danger of exceeding that."

The dark-haired one opened both wardrobe doors to show him the rest of the outfits. "This is no worse than anything else you have," he pointed out. "It's not as fine as what you wore last night to the party and you put that on without an argument. Your wedding finery will be much more elaborate than what you have now."

Daniel rubbed at his temple, trying to ward off a headache. "You two are merciless. I prefer simple clothes." This last almost came out like a plea.

"These _are_ simple," the brown-haired one insisted. "Clean lines, masculine cut and color, minimal embroidery and very little pattern in the fabric. Simple."

Daniel examined the rich red color and quiet pattern of the fabric that made up the long coat. Next to it was a long-sleeved white shirt, a vest that matched the coat, black pants, and boots. It was more than a little ironic that he was now a "prince-elect" who would be decked out like every little girl's vision of a fairy-tale prince.

"Fine," Daniel muttered, taking out a set of underclothes from the wardrobe drawers and snatching the outfit from the bed before heading back into the bathroom to dress. "But you two _will_ return my uniforms!"

Once the door was closed the dark-haired valet turned to the one with brown hair. "What do you think he'll say once he finds out that we cut them up for cleaning rags?"

--

By the time Daniel returned to his quarters that afternoon he was ready to either scream or kill something. Either would work. From the time he'd left his quarters to now he hadn't had a moment to himself, let alone a chance to think and take all of this chaos in and make sense of it. Once he was dressed his valets ushered him off to meet with someone whose title was never made exactly clear to him who wanted a biography of Daniel.

"I thought that everyone already knew that," Daniel said, remembering the barrage of questions he'd faced at the University.

"People at the University do, but a large number of people are not within the University and they will not have heard. So, what can you tell me about yourself and your family?"

The question and answer session lasted for a few hours and by that time he was more than a little hungry. His valets led him to breakfast with the Rulers (Lyssa was not there) but his appetite vanished once he heard the topic of conversation: a husband's duties to their daughter. They were pretty predictable at first—to be a credit to the royal family, to fulfill his obligations, and to be kind and considerate to Lyssa. That was when the conversation went south since they began talking about the requirements he would need to fill on the wedding night and honeymoon. Making sure that Lyssa would become pregnant with his child was the _least_ of it!

When they began talking about grandchildren, Daniel had a sudden urge to drown himself in the decorative fountain outside. "Isn't it a little early to talk about this?" he asked a little desperately.

"Not in the slightest," Mara said. "The first child needs to be born as soon as possible after the wedding. Physician Shea says that not only are you healthy, you are more than capable of fathering children, and we desperately need heirs for the throne since for several generations there has only been one child per generation. Succession is always a worry. Even now it's not too early to _do_ something about it, Daniel."

Daniel grasped what she was implying and felt himself blush a painful red. "Um, that should really wait for the wedding night. Really, it should."

"Oh, don't be modest!" Stane said chummily. "People will understand if the child is born only a few months after the wedding."

"Oh, my God," Daniel groaned, too embarrassed to say anything else.

"Stane, you're going to embarrass the poor boy," Mara chided.

"Um, too late," Daniel reminded them.

Once Daniel was done with that ordeal his valets escorted him to the chapel, where he met with the priest who would be performing the ceremony. There he was schooled in the rudiments of their religion ("It's not necessary to give up your present faith, dear boy, but it is necessary for you to be able to understand and occasionally participate in ours.") and coached on the wedding ceremony and his investiture as prince.

"So, the wedding comes before the…investiture?" he asked, somewhat confused.

"Exactly right," the priest said, pleased with how well he was picking things up. "Now, let's go over the wedding vows."

After that he was dragged off to another room to see…Narys. Oh, no. Daniel almost bolted from the room when he entered and saw the tailor waiting for him. "You already have my measurements!" Daniel said almost desperately. "What do I have to see you for?"

"I'm also helping to arrange the wedding!" Narys said, delighted with the task. "Now, Lyssa will be doing most of it—selecting colors, dresses, menus, flowers, and so forth, but she asked me to work with you on the groom's part. There are several little ceremonies you'll need to accomplish the day before and the day of the wedding, so I'm going to help you with learning them and of course, you'll need to get her a gift. The Rulers requested me to help you choose one."

"Great," Daniel said flatly.

Narys stared at him, confused at his tone, but then he smiled. "Ah, they gave you 'the talk,' didn't they? Don't worry about it; it's their responsibility both as Rulers and her parents. Knowing that probably doesn't make it less embarrassing, does it?"

For the first time, Daniel warmed toward Narys. "No, it doesn't. But thanks."

"You're welcome," he said. "Now, these are the accepted styles for the groom's outfit and once Lyssa chooses the colors we'll know what fabrics to use for them, but take a look. Do you see a style you like?"

That was the last time things were easy for him that morning. The ceremonies Narys had to teach him were intricate and they had to be done absolutely right, so he had to practice the moves in each several times before he got it all right. There was the candle-lighting ceremony he performed at the outdoor chapel the night before the wedding and the recitation ceremony, which would consist of him walking around the same place, stopping and assuming a certain pose (head down and looking thoughtful, head up and staring at the stars, arms folded, one foot resting on a bench, etc.) at each stop and reciting certain prayers. Apparently, the first Ruler had done this before his wedding and now the actions he'd taken were traditions. On the day of the wedding he would have to greet the Rulers, greet the people, and then he would send his gift to Lyssa. Only once those things were accomplished would he be allowed to get ready for the wedding and go to the chapel.

"Any questions?" Narys asked after they'd been rehearsing for a while.

"Um, one," Daniel admitted. "You know, no one's told me when this wedding is supposed to take place."

"Oh," Narys said. "No one?"

"No."

"Well, the Rulers told me two months."

Daniel felt a massive weight leave his shoulders. Two months. That gave him time. "Oh, thank you. I thought it would happen sooner."

"Two months is soon enough, huh?" Narys asked.

Daniel pinched the bridge of his nose. "Narys, I don't want to marry Lyssa. I care for her, yes, but I don't think that's enough. Don't get me wrong, she's a wonderful person and she's been very kind to me, but I have obligations. It wouldn't be fair of me to disappear for a couple of weeks at a time fulfilling those obligations."

"But you can only leave the planet for short periods, isn't that right?"

Daniel nodded. "For now, yes, but it's only a matter of time before our doctor figures out this virus and figures out a way to get rid of it. When she does that, I'll be able to go home."

Narys stared at him. "You won't leave for good, will you?"

"Oh, I expect I'll be back occasionally, but my schedule won't allow me to be a husband to Lyssa. That's part of the reason why I don't want to marry her. It wouldn't be fair to her."

Narys blinked and the poor guy looked as if he were about to go into shock. "I see. Well, let's hope it all works out for the best."

"Let's," Daniel agreed affably.

Finally, at long last, his valets escorted him back to his quarters for lunch. He was so thankful to see SG-1 there that his knees almost buckled.

"He's alive!" Jack said gleefully. "Tired of wedding preparations, Daniel?"

"Don't start, Jack," Daniel said easily as he took his seat at the table. "Good to see you."

"Great to see you too."

"Where were you guys all morning?" Daniel asked. "What were you up to?"

"We got a call from home."

_That _got his attention like nothing else could, except for an old artifact or a new book. "And?"

Sam, Teal'c, and Jack were all smiling.

"Janet's got a possible cure she wants to try, Daniel."

For the first time in a while, he felt hope. "A cure?"

"A cure! She's on her way!"

Daniel was on his feet a half-second later than the rest of his team and all of them were hugging and jumping up and down. Echoing over and over again in his head were the words _a cure_ and _she's on her way._

--

A hand on her shoulder woke her up and she jerked upright in her chair, startled. "What?"

"Doctor, you asked me to wake you in case you fell asleep," Lieutenant Evans said. "Feel better?"

Janet rubbed at her neck, wishing that she'd taken one of the beds. "Much, thank you."

"The general's on his way and said that he's looking forward to seeing what you have."

She grinned. "Oh, I'm looking forward to seeing his reaction."

The lieutenant left and Janet got to her feet to gather her supplies and evidence to show General Hammond. He walked in just as she was finishing. "Hello, doctor. What have you got for me?"

"A possible cure," Janet said. "I've been working on this since we brought it back, and I've already told you that this thing is actually intelligent. The little organisms that have populated Daniel's body actually communicate with one another. It's rudimentary, but it's there. Take a look in this microscope."

The general did. "Okay. What am I seeing?"

"That's a picture of the viruses communicating with one another that there is no danger. That's what the communication is—danger or no danger. The rest of their communication consists of demonstration, rather than what we're seeing now."

"So these viruses…show two lines on their body when it's not dangerous?" Hammond asked, still staring in the microscope.

"Yes," Janet said, switching the slides. "This is what they look like when there's danger."

Hammond stared at the slide. "Well, that's quite different. What was the danger they were facing?"

Janet smiled. "A cocktail of intravenous fluids but mostly sodium and potassium."

Hammond felt a smile starting. "If I'm understanding you right, then all we'd have to do is give Dr. Jackson an IV cocktail and...what do these organisms do when faced with danger?"

"Mostly they run from it, but when they're surrounded, they try to fight their way through it. Take a look at this slide."

Hammond looked. "I don't see anything."

Janet increased the magnification. "Now what do you see?"

"Hmm." Hammond examined the view in the microscope. "Little bits and pieces."

"Those little bits and pieces are what's left after I surrounded the viruses with a sodium and potassium mix and they tried to fight their way through it."

"So they..." Hammond stopped and searched for words. "Blew up?"

"Kaboom," Janet confirmed.

"Any chance of this hurting Dr. Jackson?"

"None that I can find," she admitted. "I guess we won't really know until we try it. Unfortunately, I can't really test this beyond trying it out on him."

"Why's that?"

"Well, I played with the idea of giving this bug to some rats to see if it would have the same effect, but it might mutate in a rat's system and spread among animals or even spread to humans, and then we would have little chance of fighting it, especially if it did mutate and the IV cocktail proved ineffective against the new strain. We would have a pandemic on our hands, sir."

Hammond winced. "I see your point. All right. We'll run this by Dr. Jackson and if he agrees, we'll go ahead with this. I really don't see what other choice he has."

Janet shook her head. "Neither do I. Shall we let SG-1 know?"

"Let's."

--

"General!" Jack said, staring at his CO. "You're offworld again."

"I wanted to come and say hello to Dr. Jackson in person," Hammond told him.

"Good to see you, sir," Daniel said, shaking the older man's hand. "How are you?"

"Oh, I'm just fine. How are you doing?"

Jack just had to give the general a little rundown of the situation. "Physically, I'd say he's fine, but mentally is another story."

Hammond looked at Jack. "How so?"

"The Rulers and their expectations are driving Daniel crazy. We did tell you, didn't we, that they're planning on hitching their daughter to Daniel?"

"Yes, you did, and I still think the idea is as crazy as it was the first time I heard it," Hammond told him. "You have explained why that really isn't feasible?"

"We told them it was crazy," Jack said, smiling.

"And I told them that I didn't want to marry Lyssa," Daniel said. "Sam found out that it was a cultural thing for the prospective groom to always refuse the first time he heard he was getting married."

"But I clarified that for Lyssa, and we're all hoping that she can get her parents to listen to her," Sam added. "In the meantime, they're keeping Daniel busy with all sorts of wedding preparations and the like."

"And they're driving me crazy," Daniel finished. "We've actually formulated a plan so I can avoid the wedding if I'm still here in two months--that's D-Day, by the way--but if this cure works, then we won't have to worry."

"We're hoping it will work. Oh, thanks, Teal'c," Janet said as the Jaffa took the bags and cases she was holding.

"What is contained in these cases, Dr. Frasier?" Teal'c asked, examining them.

"Those are lots of bags of different IV solutions and some other supplies. I'm going to be here monitoring Daniel while this idea of mine is administered. According to tests, it should work without any major problems, but I'd rather be here just in case. I was kind of hoping we could do this on Earth, but I think it would take too long. Best to do it here just to be safe."

"Is this something we can do here, or should it be done back at the palace?" Jack asked.

"I think the palace would be the better choice," Janet said. "I'd like Daniel to be as comfortable as possible while we do this since I don't really know how long it will take."

"Let's get going, then," Jack said chummily as he led the way back to the car. While they hiked back to their ride they chatted and caught up on SGC base gossip and the general brought Daniel up to speed with the day's news. They reached the car and Janet had to stop and stare at it.

"Woah," she said, taking in the sleek lines of the vehicle. "This is different from the last car I saw."

"It's the car they put at Daniel's disposal while he's here," Jack told her, enjoying the embarrassment on Daniel's face. "Apparently the future son-in-law of the Rulers needed an appropriate car."

"It's ostentatious," Daniel muttered as he got in.

"It's _cool_," Jack told him. "It's way better than the car you've got back home."

Daniel stared at him. "What's wrong with my car?"

"Nothing, really," Jack said as everyone else piled in. "Just a little boring."

Daniel ignored that comment and ordered the car back to the palace. Once they arrived they headed up to Daniel's room and at Janet's insistence he lay down on the bed.

"I don't know how uncomfortable this will be," she said, setting up the IV.

"Why would an IV be uncomfortable?" Daniel asked, not understanding.

"This solution consists of a lot of sodium and potassium and sometimes a high-potassium solution can be painful for the body to take in. I'll be monitoring your heart while you're on this drip since too much potassium can cause arrhythmia." She looked down at him and saw the apprehension in his eyes. "Daniel? Are you all right?"

"Guess I'm a little nervous," he said as she set up a heart monitor. "How badly can it hurt?"

Janet thought about the different descriptions she'd heard from patients who'd undergone potassium drips and wondered if she should tell Daniel. Then again, he was nervous enough. "Well, other patients kind of--"

"What's going on here?" a voice demanded from the doorway.

Daniel groaned. "I knew you two would track me down," he said, fixing his valets with a glare. "What do you want?"

"There's a tea this afternoon for--"

"Send my regrets," Daniel said shortly. "I'm about to have an important medical procedure done and it can't be interrupted."

"Has Physician Shea ordered this?" the dark-haired one asked. Both men appeared worried.

"No, my regular doctor has," Daniel said, quite enjoying the valets' worry. "I trust her judgment in this and I see no reason to consult Physician Shea unless you know something about this virus that we don't."

"Not at all," said the dark-haired valet while the other valet turned and fled. The dark-haired valet went the other way, still giving them the evil eye.

"Let's get this done before those two come back," Janet said. "Daniel, go ahead and take off your shirt so I can put this monitor on you."

Daniel did as he was told and once the sensors were on him he lay down and found a comfortable position on his bed. Janet swabbed his arm and put in the IV to begin the drip while Daniel forced himself to stay relaxed. Despite his best efforts his heart rate sped up a little. "I'm nervous," he said as Janet checked the monitor.

"I can tell," she said. "Don't worry about it. Just try to relax a little."

"Trying."

It was quiet for a few minutes but suddenly Daniel grabbed Sam's hand. "Ow. Um, Janet, this is starting to hurt. This is starting to _really_ hurt!"

"I know," Janet said miserably. "I know, Daniel. Just try to bear with it."

"How long will this take?" he groaned, still holding onto Sam's hand.

"I'm going to take a blood sample in five minutes to see how effective this dose is."

"I've got to spend five minutes like this?"

"Just hold on," General Hammond encouraged him. "You can do this."

Daniel swallowed and closed his eyes, apparently preparing himself to endure what had to be endured.

"You can do it, Daniel," Jack said, sitting on the side of the bed.

"I know I can," Daniel said through gritted teeth. "I just wish this didn't hurt so much!" He grabbed Jack's hand a second later, surprising them both. "Sorry, Jack. It makes it easier if I hang onto something."

"That's why human beings have more than one hand," Jack told him.

"Exactly," Sam said, wrapping the hand she held with both hands. "Friends are there to hold your hand."

Daniel gave a grimace that might have been a smile. "Thanks."

He was quiet for a little bit and he closed his eyes, apparently determined to suffer in silence, but his eyes popped open. "Stop!"

Janet looked at him. "Daniel?"

"I closed my eyes and I saw the word 'stop,'" Daniel explained. He closed his eyes again. "It's still there. Stop."

"Stop what?" Jack asked, confused.

"That's all it says!" Daniel told him, more than a little frustrated. "Janet? Could I be hallucinating?"

"Unlikely," she said. "You only see this when you close your eyes?"

"That's when I see it," he admitted. He closed his eyes and looked again, distracted from the discomfort of the potassium drip. "Oh, wait, there's more. It says 'stop' and now it says 'pain.'"

"Doctor, could these viruses be capable of communicating with us?" Hammond demanded, beginning to feel very worried.

"Well, they're certainly capable of talking with each other, so why not us?" she suggested.

"Janet, it says 'stop pain now,'" Daniel reported. "That's sensible language, so I'm thinking we should stop."

"But if we stop," Sam interrupted, "you'll be stuck here, Daniel."

"I really don't want to stop since this is the only thing we've found that is effective against this virus," Janet said.

Daniel seemed about to answer, but a second later he started screaming. This startled all of them enough so that Janet reached for the IV and stopped the drip before taking it out of Daniel's arm. "It's stopped!" she shouted. "Stop hurting him!"

Abruptly, Daniel relaxed and then went limp. "Thanks, Janet." A moment later an odd look came over his face and he smiled.

"Daniel, you okay?" Jack asked, still hanging onto Daniel's hand.

"Oooh, yeah," Daniel drawled. "Better than okay. All the pain's gone and I feel pretty good. Better than good, actually."

The transition from man-in-pain to happy-go-lucky surprised Janet so much that she took a blood sample and immediately began working on it with every piece of equipment she had.

"Don't worry, Janet," Daniel said with a soppy smile as he stretched. "I feel fine."

"That's why I'm worried."

Daniel said nothing and rolled onto his side, and a moment later he was asleep.

"Doc?" Jack said, staring at Daniel.

"Colonel?"

"Work fast."


	14. Chapter 14

Daniel's Journal

_I am so very, very tired. I've been here for ages and Janet thought she finally had a cure for this virus thing I have, but the treatment failed. The virus itself actually put a stop to the treatment by making me hurt like crazy and Janet didn't want to risk continuing. We've come across little microbes and possible diseases that could communicate before, but this is the first time I've had one. I'm nervous because we're not entirely sure just how _aware_ this thing is. These little organisms can communicate with one another and with us, but how far will that communication go? Is it rudimentary or are they on a mental par with humans? Will we be able to explain to them that it isn't the best thing for me to have them living inside me? I hope it'll be that easy. Uh-oh. Janet wants to examine me again. Better put this away._

Next Day

_Fell asleep during my exam yesterday. Apparently the treatment or the organisms' reaction to it tired me out, because I slept for the rest of the day and all of last night as well as the entire morning today. The Rulers stopped by as I was having brunch (it was really lunch, but it felt like breakfast) to see how I was. My valets told Physician Shea and the Rulers what Janet was trying and now I have two more valets in addition to the first two and Shea made it abundantly clear that Janet is not to try any more treatments on me unless he approves them first. What a brain-dead cretin._

_Janet did not take that well and her tirade was a pleasure and a privilege to hear. Even better to hear were Jack's complaints about the fact that I now have four valets who look like they used to be members of SWAT. The first two were bad enough but the four of them together would scare even a Goa'uld. They're big and scary and I have a feeling that they're here to make sure I—and any guests I have—behave. So far they haven't had much to do since Shea wants me to rest today. I get a break from the crazy wedding plans and schedule today, thank goodness. My valets are bustling about the room doing various things but I have a feeling that they're really spying for the Rulers. I really don't trust Lyssa's parents, but I do trust Lyssa._

_She came to see me today after I was up and fed. She said she was sorry that I wasn't feeling well but that she hoped I would feel better soon. Jack, Sam and Teal'c gave us a bit of privacy for a while and we played Othello. Lyssa told me about her parents and she said that they're very determined to do what is best for their people. From what I can gather, it's best for their people if I remain here and marry Lyssa. Don't get me wrong, Lyssa is a very good person and I like her quite a bit, but being pressured to marry her after just a few months…just thinking about it gives me a headache. Couldn't they give me some more time to think about this? Maybe a year or two? Or a hundred? I asked Lyssa if she wanted to marry me and she said that she would rather it was me than any of her other choices, and it's not really her choice to get married at all, but it's her duty to marry and have children. She owes it to her people, she said, since there's been a succession worry the last few generations. I think maybe her people owe her a little less pressure since she's done everything she's ever been asked to, but that's just me. It's almost supper time. My friends will be back in a little bit to eat with me and then I think I'll go to bed early. I'm still tired._

Next Day

_I'm finally feeling more like myself. Janet told me that she's been running tests on the blood samples she took the other day after the failed test and she says the organisms have replenished themselves. The blood she took just after the failed procedure was full of something she calls "feel-good chemical" and she thinks the viruses put it out after the drip was removed. They haven't tired to communicate with me since the failed procedure and I'm wondering if I should try to talk to them. I'm not sure how much longer I can be here without going crazy. I had all sorts of wedding-related things to do today, along with my future duties as consort. I was presented to the Council, to the University (quite a few people welcomed me back and congratulated me on my engagement, but I could have done without the congrats), and to the people of the settlement. The streets were packed and I was more than a little thankful that I was up on a stairway/balcony. The people cheering could have punctured the atmosphere and I'm kind of surprised it didn't bring the clouds out of the sky. After my presentation I had tea with the Rulers and a very uncomfortable question-and-answer session with them. They were full of questions about me, my family, my work, and my personal values and feelings. As Lyssa's parents, it was their duty to figure all this out before we married. I don't know what purpose it will serve—will ask Lyssa._

Later

_I asked Lyssa and she said that the answers to my questions will be entered in the family journal. In future times, she said, parents will be consulting that book to see what kind of consorts were selected in the past for the royal heirs and I guess that future rulers will be using those biographies as a blueprint for who they should choose for their own children. She said that when it came time to choose spouses for our children we'll probably be consulting it._

_Hearing Lyssa talk about this made me realize that time is running out. I have to do something._

Later

_Talked with Jack, Sam, and Teal'c. We told the Rulers I was going to escort my friends to the Gate so they can go home and then I would be back tonight, but actually, we have a plan. They'll head home and bring back survival gear for me. I'm going to disappear into the wilderness for a while. I left a note for Lyssa, telling her that I'll be fine and that I'll be gone for a while, but I haven't told her where I'll be. After she's been so kind to me I couldn't just leave without a word. My valets—all four of them—were planning to accompany us but I told them that I do not want their company right now. I must have looked deadly serious since they agreed to stay here. Thank goodness, we'll be able to head out without the former SWAT members. I have a backpack so I'd better put this in there. It's almost time to go._

Next Morning

_Our plan went off without a hitch. I walked General Hammond, Janet, Jack, Sam, and Teal'c to the Gate, they went through, and Jack, Sam, and Teal'c came back ten minutes later with survival gear for me. They are nothing if not thorough. I have a tent with a rain shield, sleeping bag, several changes of uniform and a spare pair of boots, cold weather gear, first aid kit, fire starter, flashlight, lantern, and batteries for both, knife, pocketknife, zat, lots of rations and water purifiers, and of course, stuff to work on and read. They have their own gear and we'll be camping out—it turns out SG-1 was due for a little down time and my friends have graciously decided to take pity on me and spend it here. General Hammond wished us all luck and expressed his regret that the procedure didn't work, but while I'm camping out Janet has the harder task of trying to figure out this little organism…virus…whatever. I wished Janet luck, thanked the general for his good wishes, and all four of us struck out into the wilderness to find a suitable campsite. It has to be somewhat near the Gate so our radios can pick it up in case the base calls us, but it can't be too easy to find in case the Rulers are looking for us. We've found not a bad site a couple miles from the Gate in something like a hidden glen or valley. We almost walked right past it but Sam noticed something about it and a five-minute walk led us down a tiny pass into this spot. It's definitely idyllic! There's a spring with fresh water not far from our campsite, the drainage is good and the ground is even, and there are trees and the valley walls to shelter us from bad weather. For the next week it'll be just SG-1 in the wilderness and we won't have to worry about being attacked by natives or found by the Goa'uld. The only predators we need to worry about live out on the plains, and we're in the forests. All the better. We can chill out, relax, and just be. No more now. Jack has created dinner—I say 'created' because I don't know just what it is he's done—and is telling me to quit scribbling away and come eat. More tomorrow._

Next Day

_Very nice day. We slept late and had a late breakfast or an early lunch. Either way, it was food. We spent a lot of time today just hanging out and relaxing. We played a few board games that Jack has brought along and Teal'c brought a portable DVD player and some DVDs so we watched a movie this afternoon. It was a sight, all of us crowded around that little player! Had a nap, which was very nice, and now Sam is making dinner. I tried to help, but she told me that wasn't necessary. Soon it will be time to eat and then we'll probably sit around the campfire talking and telling stories. I wish every trip we take offworld could be this relaxing._

Next Day

_We stayed up late stargazing last night and this morning we explored our little valley. On the opposite side of the valley there's a waterfall and a very small lake. We went for a swim once we checked the water for any nasty little surprises and we swam so long that we all got a little sunburned. After our swim we had lunch and then lazed about our campsite for a while. After that Teal'c gave us lessons in tracking and stealth. I thought Jack was good at being unobtrusive and, well, sneaky, but Teal'c is a master at it. He can walk into some bushes and disappear. I did okay except that some dust got into my nose and I sneezed. According to Jack the bush I was hiding in jerked when I sneezed. Tonight Teal'c brought out a surprise for supper--hot dogs and s'mores! The packing material the Air Force uses to preserve food is incredible, the hot dogs were perfect! I ate four of them and had three s'mores before I was stuffed. Now we're all gathered around the fire chatting. It's been a long, full day and I'm more than a little sleepy._

Next Day

_Woke up this morning beside the burned-out campfire wrapped up in my sleeping bag. Turns out I fell asleep and no one had the heart to wake me up in order to get me to go to the tent. It also turns out that no one wanted to go to their tents--we all slept out under the stars. Had this book on my chest when I woke up and Jack's still laughing about my hugging it like a teddy bear. We're planning on swimming again this morning and then after that we'll be exploring a little more. Sam estimates the valley to be about 5 miles long and 2 wide with lots of little glens and natural pockets along the walls. She thinks the valley itself could have been formed from a combination of glacier and seismic activity. However it was formed, I like it here._

Later

_Just had a call from home on our radios. Janet has nothing new to report but she is still working on the problem. General Hammond hopes that we're having fun and that we're all fine. We radioed back that things were good, we'd found a good campsite (with good radio reception!) and we were enjoying down time. Today's our fifth day out. My friends have three more days to spend here before they have to go home. We'd better make these last two days count._

Next Day

_Soooo tired. Jack led us on a hike to do a little more exploring. Had a swim this afternoon. MREs for supper. Had a chalk-bag war (like paint ball except we throw chalk bags at one another to make a hit) after supper. I have three bruises from chalk-bag hits and I'm more than ready for bed._

Next Day

_Cooler today, so we didn't go swimming. Instead, we lazed about again and played games or talked. Sam found a stand of conifer trees and brought back a lot of things that look like pine cones. While we talked, she made pine cone animals and she gave me one that looks like a squirrel. I've put him just outside my tent door so now I have a guard squirrel. So far it's been quiet--no sign of any searchers. I hope it stays this way._

--

"It's been _days_," Mara complained. "I don't believe this. He still has so much to learn in order to be ready for the wedding! The other prayers, the dances, the vows... We explained everything to him very clearly and I'm sure he understood us, so why has he run off?"

"Mother, he told us that he didn't want to get married," Lyssa said, watching her parent pace back and forth across the room. "We didn't appear to be listening, so I guess he left because of that."

"Just because he says he doesn't want to marry doesn't mean that he actually _doesn't_," Mara insisted. "I'm certain that he'll be perfectly happy to marry once he sees all of the preparations we've made for him. Making him feel welcome and comfortable is the least we can do for a new son-in-law."

"He'll be an incredibly spoiled son-in-law, then," Stane chuckled. "Larger quarters with a private garden, a study in the University, a personal car, new clothing, gifts to welcome him to the family...Ah, Mara, you do like to indulge people, don't you?"

"Why not?" Mara said, shrugging. "It's not every day that our daughter takes a husband and we gain a son-in-law. What worries me is where he is. He won't have left the planet since he has the virus, but where else could he go?"

"I have a feeling that he's set up a campsite somewhere and he's hiding until after the wedding date. Either that or until his friends find a cure for the virus. What amazes me the most is that they don't seem to accept that there is no cure for it. It's just not possible."

Mara shook her head and sat down, much to Lyssa's relief. "I think it's only a matter of time before the teams we've sent out find him. When they find him they'll bring him back."

Lyssa sighed. "Mother, what if he doesn't want to come back?"

Mara stood and crossed to her daughter's side. "Lyssa, you are a bright, intelligent, and warm-hearted person. He would be a fool to refuse to marry you. All he needs is time to get used to the idea."

"He's already had quite a bit of time," Lyssa reminded her. "He doesn't seem any more used to the idea than he was at the beginning."

"So he needs more time," Stane said, holding up his hands in a what-can-you-do gesture. "What if we pushed back the wedding another month? It would give him more time to get used to this idea and it would take off some of the pressure. Maybe we can ease him into his new duties during that time so the transition won't be too hard on him. What do you think, daughter?"

Lyssa gazed out the window to the gardens beyond. She remembered walks she'd had with Daniel outside while he was still getting well from his illness and she remembered the way she'd been so happy to be near him. She remembered his smile, the sound of his voice, and the feel of his hand as he took hers to help her over a rough patch in the path. She remembered how he looked while he was sleeping, when he was absorbed in a book or a game, or when he was daydreaming. The sound of his laughter, the sight of him, the light in his eyes. She thought about the other men her parents had considered and remembered how frightened she'd been that they would choose one of them. She could remember how relieved she was that they'd chosen Daniel. She knew that he didn't want to marry, but maybe...Maybe... "Yes, I think that's a good idea."

A knock on the door brought her back down to earth.

"Yes?" Mara said.

The door opened, revealing one of Daniel's valets. "Rulers. I think we've found him."

Mara let out a sigh of relief. "Where?"

"In the forest. It looks like he and his friends have been camping in one of the deeper valleys. It's a miracle we found them at all, given the area they're camped in. Shall we bring him back now or would you like us to wait for a different time?"

"Immediately," Stane and Mara said together.


	15. Chapter 15

Chapter 15

Daniel was a thoroughly unhappy and angry man. He'd been jerked out of sleep by Teal'c calling an alarm and then roughly pulled out of his tent by one of his valets.

"Hello, sir," the man said chummily, setting Daniel on his feet. "Glad we found you. You must be a bit tired of rusticating by now, so why don't we head back toward civilization?" Although his tone was friendly, the man's grip on his arms was just this side of painful and Daniel tried to pull away, wincing when the man tightened his grip. It appeared that the man wasn't about to let him go.

Daniel glanced around and saw the other three valets facing off against Jack, Sam, and Teal'c. He glared at the man who'd pulled him out of his tent and sighed. "Why don't you four go back to civilization and leave us here?" he suggested.

The valet raised an eyebrow. "Sir, I'm sorry to tell you this, but it isn't your choice. The Rulers are very worried."

"Of course they are," Daniel muttered. He paused and thought about the situation. Four valets; four members of SG-1. Jack had a zat in his hand, there was one by Sam's feet, and Daniel was sure he could reach a zat if he hurried for it, and Teal'c was a weapon all on his own. They would more than be a match for these four commandos disguised as menservants.

"Sir? Reporting as ordered."

A new voice brought Daniel out of his introspection and he fought down a groan as five more men entered the campsite.

"Check them for weapons and secure their hands," the valet holding Daniel ordered.

"Absolutely not!" Daniel rapped out as the men moved to obey. "I won't allow my friends to be treated in such a manner!" Hey, he didn't want to marry Lyssa and become a prince, but that didn't mean he couldn't act like a royal who expected to be obeyed. Nine times out of ten, it worked.

The men hesitated, hearing Daniel's tone.

"Do as you're told," the valet ordered again, tightening his grip before turning his attention to Daniel. "You, sir, are going to dress and then we will be leaving. If you do not wish to dress on your own, then your valets are here to help you."

Daniel glared at him and pulled away, and to his surprise the valet let him go. "I am more than capable of putting on my own clothing, and if I am forced to go through with this marriage, then I _will_ be establishing my own household according to the consort's custom and I _will_ be choosing my own servants!"

"As you like," the valet said lightly as Daniel went into the tent and zipped the door closed.

Daniel dressed with lightning speed and found his knife before carefully moving to the back of the tent. The fire outside was still burning and he could see the shadows of people outside, but he could see no one behind the tent. Making a silent apology to General Hammond and the base exchange, Daniel made a slit in the back wall of the tent with his knife and slid through. He and Jack had discussed what he was to do if they were found, and he was doing it. He was to run for the hills and wait until he heard from someone.

He made it all of two feet before someone dropped out of the tree in front of him, startling him so much that he yelled.

"You were right, Cly," the man said, sounding altogether too happy for Daniel's liking. "He tried it."

"I thought so," Cly said. Daniel turned and saw that it was the same man who'd pulled him out of the tent. "Where do you think you're going?"

"Do you really have to ask?" Daniel said snarkily as the other man took his knife. "Give that back. That's mine."

"Mmm…no," the other man said. "You don't need it."

Daniel let it go. He had to conserve his strength for other battles, mainly with Cly.

"We can do this one of two ways," Cly said, walking up to him and clapping a hand on his shoulder. "You can march out of this place and back to our transport under your own power and untied, or you can be tied up and carried back over a shoulder. Which will it be? Either way, you're going."

Daniel glanced to where the rest of SG-1 waited. "Untie my friends and I'll go without giving you any trouble."

"Daniel?" Jack said from where he was. "What do you think you're doing?"

"As much as I hate to admit it, they've got us, Jack."

"Well, yeah," Jack said. "But that doesn't mean we have to make this easier for them."

"I wasn't thinking about making it easier for them; I was thinking about making it easier for us," Daniel pointed out before turning to Cly. "So, which is it?"

Cly considered Daniel's offer and smiled. "All right," he said, nodding to his men. "You see, Dr. Jackson? We can be reasonable."

Daniel just looked at him pointedly. "I'm not going to bother with the proper response."

--

Daniel's four valets marched him up the stairs of the palace, through hallways, across galleries, down corridors, and finally through an open doorway. The other men had escorted the rest of SG-1 back in the direction of their quarters, but Daniel was taken in a new direction. Beyond the doorway was a room set up like a sitting room and off to either side Daniel could see doors standing open, revealing a bedroom to the right and a study to the left.

"Where are we?" he asked as the men closed the doors with a firm click.

"These are your new quarters," Cly said. "They're much more appropriate for your future station."

"Sure they are," Daniel drawled, more than a little fed up.

"I'm sure you'll want to get cleaned up and go to sleep," Cly said, still keeping up the façade of friendliness. "After all, it is in the middle of the night and you've been out in the woods for days."

"I wish to be left alone," Daniel said, not even considering turning his back on these four men while they were still in the room.

"I'll draw you a bath," one of the other men said, ignoring Daniel's request and heading into the bedroom. "You'll feel much better."

_And I'm ignored again,_ Daniel thought as he was ushered into the bedroom. His other valets were bustling about doing things: turning down the bed, taking out nightclothes for him, and pouring him something to drink. Obviously, they had their orders to make sure he went to bed.

"Your bath is ready, Dr. Jackson," the helpful one said with such a huge smile that Daniel wished him a toothache.

"Thank you," Daniel muttered as he took the nightclothes held out to him. "Not to sound rude, but could you all go away? I wish to be quite by myself, if you please." He closed the door to the bathroom, had a quick wash, dried, and dressed in the pajamas he'd been given. He folded his replacement BDUs and grabbed the boots before hiding them somewhere. There was no way he was going to lose these in addition to the uniforms he'd already lost. He was going through them like crazy and he was sure the people in charge of supplies were going to have something to say about it if he lost any more. As he left the bathroom one of the men slipped inside and began looking around.

"You won't find them," Daniel said crossly. "I'm not going to let you four anywhere near my uniforms again. I _saw_ the last set being used for cleaning rags, so don't try to deny it."

The original two exchanged guilty looks.

"I'll see the Rulers in the morning?" Daniel asked, clearly expecting the answer to be "yes."

"Tomorrow," Cly assured him. "Rest well, sir." The four of them left, switching off the lights, leaving Daniel in quiet gloom. He lay there for all of five seconds before he was up out of bed and retrieving his BDUs and boots. He dressed with lightning speed and headed out of the bedroom and through the sitting room to the door. With luck he could make it to his friends' rooms without being seen and the four them could--

The door was locked. Surprised, he tried the knob again, twisting it while he pulled back on the door. He tried both doors, tugging on them so that they rattled a little, but neither one would open. Fighting down a sense of uneasiness, Daniel took a deep breath, planted his feet, and gave both doors an almighty yank.

Nothing.

"Sir?" Daniel heard from the other side of the door. It was Cly. Of _course_ that overgrown security monkey would be standing guard! "Everything all right?"

"No!" Daniel told him shortly. "The door is locked!"

"Rulers' orders, sir."

Daniel stared at the door in shock. "What?"

"Rulers' orders, sir," Cly repeated a little louder.

"I heard you," Daniel snapped. "Why did they order my door to be locked?"

"I can't believe you have to ask that, Dr. Jackson," Cly said. "A runaway future son-in-law is not something they're prepared to deal with again."

Daniel fought to take a deep breath. "Look, I have _issues_ with being locked up! The walls start closing in!"

"You can air those issues to the Rulers in the morning, sir, and we're here in case you need anything. If the walls start closing in, call us and we'll come in and sit with you so you aren't alone, all right? In the meantime, try to go to sleep."

Daniel wondered if Cly were patronizing him and decided it didn't matter. He prowled his room, wrestled some windows open (for the first time he noticed there were decorative iron-work grilles on them) and opened a door that, surprisingly, led into an enclosed garden. The walls were too high and smooth for him to climb, even at the corners, and more decorative ironwork made reaching the tops of those walls impossible. As he went back inside his mind put everything he'd seen together and he sank into a chair, fighting off a feeling of hopelessness. These quarters had one purpose in life: to keep someone in and make it impossible for them to leave.

He was in a cage. Oh, these rooms might masquerade as luxurious living quarters, but he knew them for what they were. As a whole, they formed a cage to keep someone prisoner. Trying to stave off a bleak feeling of despair, Daniel wandered the rooms again, hoping that there would be a way out that he could use that his jailers would have forgotten. The sitting room had only the two doors aside from the ones belonging to other rooms, one leading to the hallway and the other to the garden, but there was no other exit. He checked the bedroom, the bathroom, a room that looked like an exercise room, and the study, but he found nothing. In the study there were only a few books, all of them about the Rulers, the University, government, and the like. The entire shelf of books was geared toward his future duties as consort, and there were no books in there that could serve as distractions or entertainment. None of his own books had been included from his old quarters. Fabulous. He was locked in a cage with no way to distract himself from that fact. Great. Feeling defeated, Daniel returned to the bedroom, dressed for bed, and lay down. Maybe in his dreams he could forget his situation for a while. Hopefully, when he saw his friends the next day, they would be able to think of a way out of this.

--

A sleepy-eyed Walter met them at the bottom of the ramp, fighting off a yawn. "SG-1? Aren't you supposed to be back tomorrow?"

"Well, we were politely told to come home tonight," Jack muttered. "Those Napoleonic powermongers."

"Indeed," Teal'c said darkly. "Napoleonic powermongers."

Idly Sam reflected that Janet wouldn't be upset that the Rulers had usurped that title.

"And Dr. Jackson?"

"Still in the their clutches," Jack reported. "When I get my hands on those filthy, stinkin'--"

"I see," Walter said, taking a hasty step back from the colonel. "Well, you guys know the drill."

Teal'c, Sam, and Jack headed in the direction of the infirmary, with Jack continuing his tirade. "Dictatorial, thick-headed, overbearing..."

As the colonel's complaints faded, Walter reminded himself that it was always a good thing when Colonel O'Neill was angry at someone else. Not fortunate for the ones he was angry at, but fortunate for those around him. Until he took his anger out on the intended targets, the rest of the world was safe.

--

Daniel woke up sometime in the morning, washed, dressed, and went out into the sitting room. A light breakfast was waiting for him on the table and he ate a little, but the food didn't make him feel any better. Instead of sitting down and waiting for someone to come, he paced. He paced and paced, waiting. The sun rose to noon height during that time and shortly afterward one of his valets arrived with lunch for him.

"When am I going to see the Rulers?" he demanded, not even bothering to greet the man.

"Later, possibly this evening," he said, setting out the meal. "Did you enjoy your breakfast?"

"Why do I have to wait until this evening?" Daniel wanted to know, ignoring the question.

"Well, they're rather busy right now," the valet told him.

"Okay, when can I see my friends?"

The valet blinked at him. "Your friends?"

"Yes!" Daniel snapped. "My friends! When will I be allowed to see them?"

"The Rulers insisted last night that they return home."

Daniel went cold. "What?"

"That's what I was told. They'll be sent an invitation to come when the wedding celebrations begin, but until then, they've been asked not to try to return."

Daniel sank into a chair. "I see."

The valet looked at him in concern. "Are you all right, sir?"

"Yes, I'm fine," Daniel told him. "Could I be left alone, please?"

"If you wish, sir. Don't let your lunch wait too long; it will get cold."

The valet left and Daniel remained in his chair, unable to get up or even consider doing anything else. He was locked up on an alien planet, entirely at the mercy of his captors, and his friends were unable to get to him.

What was he going to do?


	16. Chapter 16

Chapter 16

Days passed and he did not see the Rulers. The only people he saw were his valets and one time Physician Shea came to give him a physical, but beyond that, he was left alone. He had nothing to do and the few books he had were not ones he particularly wanted to read. Still, they were better than nothing. Reading about the University's history and the history of the Rulers was fascinating, but the fascination soon palled when he remembered that the present Rulers were keeping him prisoner.

He spent his days pottering about his rooms or sitting outside in the garden. The garden was pleasant and quiet, with arbors, benches, and a fish pond, and it was kind of relaxing to watch the fish swim and to feed them little bread crumbs. When he wasn't out in the garden he passed a lot of the time either exercising or writing in his journal, which had been in the pocket of his BDUs when Cly and his minions had found him. Exercise got rid of a lot of nervous tension and venting in his journal entries helped him keep his emotions under control. He made a few sketches in his journal of the people of the University and the palace, and he even passed an afternoon making a sketch of Cly (the devil horns on his head were entirely appropriate).

He lost track of the days after a while and at first it bothered him, but then he decided it didn't matter. One morning he was in the garden, daydreaming of home and wondering if he would ever see it again when he became aware of someone in the garden with him. He twisted around to see who it was and actually felt himself smile. "Hello, Lyssa."

"Hello," she said, looking sad. "Daniel, I'm sorry. I didn't realize that my parents would..."

"You had nothing to do with this," Daniel interrupted her. "They're the ones that have done everything, Lyssa, not you. I'm not angry with you; I'm angry with them, all right?"

She nodded. "Thank you. I came to see how you were."

Daniel considered this. How was he? "Physically, I'm fine. Mentally, I'm bored out of my skull. There's very little to do here."

She smiled and reached into the pocket of her gown. "I thought you might be bored, so I brought you something." She held out a book, one filled with a miscellany of information, stories, puzzles, and pictures. "This ought to keep you entertained for a while."

"Oh, thank you," Daniel said fervently as he took the book. He flipped throught the pages, browsing, and he felt his mood lighten. This book was a treasure trove! "I love it! I can't wait to read it!"

"I'm glad you like it," she said, sitting down next to him. "Daniel, could I ask you something?"

He set the book aside so he would give her his attention. "Sure. What is it?"

"If I were a woman you had met on Earth and our time together was normal for Earth, would you consider asking me to marry you?"

Oooh. He'd been afraid of something like this. How could he answer this truthfully without hurting her feelings? "If you were a woman I had met on Earth, you and I would have to know one another for a long while before I would consider asking you to marry me."

"But Sam told me you married Sha're right away," she said quietly. "Why did you marry her after just one day?"

Daniel pursed his lips and nodded. "Yes. I married her right away, but then, something about Sha're just felt _right_. You see, she was given to me by her father as a gift--I know, it's shocking, but that's the way they did things there. If I had refused to accept her, she would have been dishonored and then no man would have wanted her. Once I realized that we'd had an actual wedding according to their customs and I realized that I felt deeply about her, I realized that I wanted to stay with her." He looked at Lyssa and realized with a shock that she was crying. "Lyssa? What's wrong?"

"That was beautiful," she said, burying her face in a handkerchief. "I'm all right. Daniel, I have to ask: Is there anything I could do or say that would make you want to stay here? With me?"

Unable to think of any other way to comfort her, Daniel hugged her. "Lyssa, if this whole situation were just about how I felt about you, then there would be no hesitation on my part. There are other issues, though. I have responsibilities and obligations on Earth that I didn't have when I married Sha're. Now that I have them, there's no way I could marry and live offworld. I know I have that virus, but Janet's working on finding a way to either get rid of it or keep it from hurting me. Once it's gone, I'm going to have to leave. I'm needed on Earth. To have me going back and forth all the time and going off on missions to other worlds would not be fair to you."

She nodded. "I see, Daniel. But, part of me hopes you'll change your mind. I like you very much and there's no one else I really want to marry."

"I'm flattered, Lyssa," Daniel said. "I hope I can justify the impression you have of me."

"There is no justification needed, Daniel. I hope that eventually I can get to know you better."

Daniel didn't want to admit it, much less say it aloud, but he had to. "I'd like to get to know you better, too."

She smiled. "I'm glad, Daniel. You know, Sam told me about customs on Earth that have to do with courtship and marriage, and I think I'd like to try one now." With that, she got up, turned to face him, and sank down on one knee before taking his hand in hers. "You are the only man I could possibly consider marrying, and I was hoping that you would do me the great honor of becoming my husband, Daniel," she said. "I feel a strong affection for you and I'm hoping that in time it could become something greater between us. Would you consider marrying me, Daniel?"

Daniel stared at her, shocked beyond words. "Um--uh--" Oh, brilliant. Usually he was so good with words; why on earth did all of his eloquence have to desert him _now_?

"I'm not asking for a definite answer this moment," she said. "I want an answer when you feel ready to give me one. In the meantime, keep this and think about it, and please think about me." He felt something pressed into his hand, felt her kiss his cheek, and she left.

How long he sat there was beyond him, but a sound inside the sitting room brought him out of his shock. Cly was there, setting up lunch for him.

"Hello, Dr. Jackson," he said chummily. "How are you?"

"Fine," Daniel said mechanically. That one word broke his paralysis and enabled him to move. He looked down at what he held in his hand and felt the panic rise.

Lyssa had given him a ring. It was shiny silver, covered with a delicate, scrolling vine motif. He knew from Lyssa that a certain flowering vine on this planet was considered the lovers' flower, much as roses were thought of on Earth. Sure enough, there at the crest of the ring where a jeweler would put a stone were a cluster of the flowers.

Oh, boy.

"I have a message to give you, sir," Cly said. "It's from the Rulers."

For the love of all things sacred, would the catastrophes _never_ end? They were the absolute _last_ people he wanted to hear from at the moment! Sighing, he gathered his patience. "What's the message?"

"They're going to come see you tonight, possibly around dinner time or after it. They want to talk to you."

His meeting with the Rulers that night was not comfortable. They came that evening after he'd had dinner. He'd been curled up in a chair all evening, trying to think about everything that had happened and fight off a headache, but their arrival brought the headache down on him like an avenging angel. He leapt to his feet, determined to have answers for their behavior. Mostly, he wanted them to know just how angry he was about all of this, and thinking about the anger brought it back and at the forefront of it was his resentment that they'd effectively banished SG-1.

"Why did you send my friends away?" he demanded, not bothering to greet them or speak respectfully. He'd absolutely had it and he was determined to have answers one way or another. "Why did you do that?"

"Because it's clear they were influencing you," Mara said stonily. "You just disappeared for days and who knows what could have happened to you?"

"We went camping!" Daniel groaned. "Honestly! And they didn't influence me to go; I made the decision to go on my own! They went with me to keep me company!"

"Why would you leave?" Stane wanted to know.

Daniel fought down the urge to throw something. They actually had to _ask_? "I thought I've told you before," he said as evenly as he could. "I do not want to get married. Lyssa is a wonderful girl and I respect her a great deal, but I won't be forced into marrying her, not by you or by anyone else." Unbidden came the memory of that morning and Lyssa's proposal. "My answer, from here and until forever, is _no_, and there's no way you can force me into it, so there's no point in keeping me locked up anymore. If you don't want me to stay in the palace because I've refused then I'll find someplace else to stay, but I won't be marrying anyone."

Stane and Mara exchanged looks. "Daniel, we would prefer it if you came to the decision to marry Lyssa on your own."

Daniel sighed. "And if I don't? What are you going to do, tie me up and have me carried to the altar?"

"We will try to…persuade you."

The way Mara said that made him nervous and he really didn't want to ask it, but he felt he had to. "Persuade me how?"

Mara sat down beside Stane on a sofa. "Daniel, do you remember before you were brought to the palace you and your friends attempted to leave the planet through the Gate?"

Daniel nodded. "I remember."

"After the guards brought you to the palace, Physician Shea looked over your friends."

Dread settled over him. "Okay."

"As a precaution, we asked that they be given something somewhat similar to what you have. They do not have the organism you have, but they do have something that will make them very sick. They won't become sick as long as they come back to the planet at least once, and then the organism will die and it will not hurt them."

"It's impossible for them to have something like that," Daniel said shakily. "Janet would have found it."

"Not necessarily," Stane said, taking up the thread of conversation. "This organism is very difficult to find once it is in someone's bloodstream. It is smaller than even the virus you have. It will not be found."

Daniel sank back into the embrace of the chair and fought off a wave of dizziness. If they kept talking about this thing, he'd lose it. To think he'd put his friends at risk like this! He was disgusted with himself for so blithely trusting that this place would be okay. Jack had voiced misgivings at the beginning of this whole thing, and had he listened? Even worse, there was nothing he could really _do_ about this situation besides what he didn't want to do. "I understand," he said, feeling utterly defeated. "What are your conditions?"

"If you persist in refusing Lyssa, or if you tell her of this situation, then your friends will not be allowed to return," Mara said. "If you are obedient in all matters, if you agree to marry Lyssa and go through the wedding and ceremonies, then your friends will be allowed to return and they will be able to continue visiting with you after the wedding and honeymoon."

Daniel nodded and pinched the bridge of his nose. "Anything else?"

"Lyssa loves you deeply," Stane said, sounding fiercely protective. "She is an affectionate person and she craves affection from others."

Daniel looked at him. "So, you want me to be the perfect fiancé and, later, the perfect husband, right? You want me to be affectionate towards her."

"As much as you can," Stane confirmed. "Can you do that, or would you need help?"

"How would anyone help me with something like _that_?"

"The virus you have could help you," Mara said, ignoring his look of surprise. "We know this is a difficult thing to face: You have to wed someone you've known only a little while and you'll have to be affectionate and loving to her. If you ask the virus for help, it can make the whole process much easier on you."

Daniel thought back to the time where the virus had communicated with him and blanched. He was not eager to go through that kind of pain again. "No, thanks. I'll be fine. I'm not a masochist."

Stane looked confused. "Masochist? Daniel, it's not a painful process."

"Yeah, right," Daniel said rudely. "It hurt like mad last time they communicated with me, and I'm not about to put myself through that again."

"What were you doing at the time?" Mara asked. "Were you doing anything to hurt them?"

"We were trying to get rid of them," Daniel admitted. "The viruses told us to stop and then I hurt like crazy."

"They were probably hurting, then," Stane opined. "Don't worry about them doing it again unless you do something to hurt them. They only want what's best for you since you are where they are."

Daniel stayed quiet. He wasn't sure he could trust himself to speak.

"Do we have a bargain?" Mara asked after a few moments.

"Hold on," Daniel said. "I'm not going to commit to this yet. Don't I get a few requests?"

Both of them looked at him, mildly surprised, but, oddly, indulgent. As if they were ready to give him what he wanted, just like parents would give a child something he really wanted. "Like what?"

"I know you want me to have all the things you think your future son-in-law ought to have, but there are some things I can do without. I do not need valets, and I do not want them. I can wait on myself without a problem."

"That's not possible, Daniel," Stane told him. "Your valets are also bodyguards and there will be times when they're needed."

"_Different_ valets, then," Daniel said sharply. "For the love of all that's holy, _please_ send me some different valets. The ones that wait on me now make me too nervous to describe. Just send me one or two men who won't try to wait on me hand or foot or try to intimidate me when they want me to do something. Part of the reason I was so eager to leave was because the valets were driving me nuts."

Both of the Rulers looked so surprised that Daniel had to fight down a sudden laugh. They looked as if this had never occurred to them!

"When you put it that way…" Stane said, sounding thoughtful. "Well, is there anything else?"

"I don't like being locked up. These rooms are very…nice, but I feel like I'm in prison here. Decorative ironwork, enclosed garden, you know. Is it possible for me to move somewhere else and to have a door that isn't locked?"

"If you like," Mara said, sounding very pleased. "Would you like your belongings moved to the new rooms?"

"Is it useless to ask to move back to my old room?"

"You are our future son-in-law, and that station means you should have a suite," Mara said firmly. "Yes, it is useless. We will have your belongings moved to your new rooms. Now, are we in agreement?"

Daniel considered the situation from every angle he could, but no new arguing points came to mind at first. "What happens if I disobey you at a later date? Will my friends pay the price then?"

Stane shook his head. "Not at all," he assured Daniel. "All that will happen for a later disobedience will be a meeting with us. I'd think, given the way you feel about us, that would be punishment enough."

"You're right," Daniel said after a moment. "All right. I have no choice but to agree."

"Wonderful!" Mara cried, leaping from her seat to hug him. "Welcome to the family!"

Daniel winced. Did she have to say _that_? A second later Stane also hugged him. "Welcome, Daniel. When will you tell Lyssa?"

"It's already late, so I'll tell her tomorrow," he said woodenly. "In the morning."

"We look forward to hearing about it," Stane said. "You'll be moved to your new rooms tomorrow, so we'll leave you now to get some rest. It will be a big day tomorrow."

"Yes, it will," Daniel said flatly as the two of them took their leave. He sank back into his chair and pulled the ring Lyssa had given him out of his pocket. He stared at it, hoping it would give him some clue of what to do. However, it had no answers to give him. Sighing, he got up from his chair and went to the door. Cly answered his knock.

"Cly, is it possible for me to visit Lyssa?"

Cly looked surprised. "The Rulers haven't said anything about that, but I'll take you to see her if you like. It's awful late, though."

"I know. I just have something to tell her." After all, why wait until morning?

It didn't take them long to get to Lyssa's room. Daniel knocked and waited, half-hoping that she wouldn't answer and half-hoping that she would.

She did. She opened the door and stared at him. "Daniel? It's late. Are you all right?"

"Oh, I'm fine. Can I come in?" He pretended not to hear Cly's little chuckle.

"Of course," she said, stepping back so he could enter. Once he was inside the room she shut the door. "What is it?"

For a minute he seriously considered telling her the truth, but he remembered the threat hanging over his friends and he knew he couldn't risk it. "I...I wanted to tell you..." He stopped and took a deep breath. He held up the ring and looked at her. "I don't even know which hand or which finger it goes on."

Her eyes went wide. "Daniel...do you mean..."

Jack had once told him that he was a good actor (after all, if you ran the chance of being captured by the enemy, you had to be able to deceive them if they decided to interrogate you) and he called on all that talent now. For his friends' sakes, he had to betray Lyssa's trust by letting her believe what he was about to say. "I mean yes," he said. "I've thought about it, and I would be honored to marry you, Lyssa."

Her entire face lit up and he felt like the lowest worm that ever crawled. She was so happy and it was all a lie. Still, she was happy, and he supposed that he could help her to be happy. Surely that would expiate the sin of lying to her, if just a little bit.

Hopefully.

She took the ring from him, slid it onto the ring finger of his left hand (so that was the same here) and pulled him close. A second later she was kissing him, she blissfully unaware of his real feelings and him hoping against hope that everything would turn out all right.


	17. Chapter 17

Chapter 17

Daniel woke up in the morning, warm and cozy and perfectly content to stay where he was for the rest of his life. Every atom in his being was telling him that this was the best place to be and that it would be a travesty if he left it. He buried his head more deeply in the pillows he was lying on and sighed. He didn't ever want to get up. Everything around him was soft and comfortable and wonderfully warm: the bed underneath him, the pillows under his head and shoulders, and the comforter that was draped over him. Perfect.

One of the pillows next to him shifted, surprising him so much that he turned his head to see why it was moving around on its own. The "pillow" rolled over and he found himself staring into Lyssa's sleepy eyes.

Oh. Oh, yeah. He remembered what had happened last night. They'd kissed for a few minutes and sat down to talk about things. Lyssa had wanted him to be able to continue his work as much as possible and to see his friends, and most of what they'd talked about had to do with that. Part of what they talked about had to do with Daniel's duties as consort and as part of the ruling family, and they had still been talking about that when Lyssa confessed that she was incredibly tired and needed to sleep. Daniel had risen to go, but Lyssa had asked him to stay with her to keep her company. He'd said he shouldn't (after all, they weren't married yet!) but she insisted and somehow he'd ended up minus his shoes and overcoat and tucked into her bed like a child who'd been up past his bedtime. He could remember the short argument they'd had about him staying.

"Lyssa, we're not married yet," Daniel had repeated. "What if someone comes in?"

"My maids know not to bother me at night unless I call for them, and your valets know where you are. No one will come in."

"But…" There was a reason he should protest; he just couldn't think of what it was!

"Daniel, it's perfectly all right for you to stay here with me," she said as she settled next to him in the bed and snuggled up close. "Honestly, you act as if I'm about to attack you! I won't; I promise."

By that time, Daniel had become nice and cozy underneath the blankets and was more than comfortable in his nest of pillows. His entire body relaxed and when Lyssa finished settling in he put his arm around her. After all, he reasoned, they were both adults and they could share a bed if they wanted. Nothing improper would happen and if anything _did_ happen it was no one's business but their own.

Lyssa's snuggling up close to him brought him back to the present. "Good morning," she said, smiling. "Sleep well?"

"Very well," he admitted, pleasantly surprised. "You?"

"I kept dreaming that your acceptance had all been a dream, so it's rather nice to wake up in a dream to find it real." She stopped and laughed. "Listen to me! I sound like a bad love story!"

"Not a _bad_ love story," he contradicted, wanting to tease her a little. "A mediocre one, maybe."

She laughed and bopped him lightly on the head with a pillow. "Very funny! I tell you something serious and you make jokes!"

"It was funny, wasn't it?"

She gave him a little peck on the end of his nose, which he found awfully, terribly cute. "Yes, it was."

Daniel grinned. "Thought so. Is it early morning or late morning?"

"Early," she informed him. "So we can loll about in bed for a while."

"Lolling's good," he said, more than happy to do so. He was so comfortable that the thought of moving and leaving this cocoon of absolute comfort was almost painful. "Even if it were late morning lolling would still be an option. I'm not in a hurry to get up."

"Neither am I," she confessed. "Even if it were noon I wouldn't want to get up."

"Or afternoon," Daniel added. "Or evening, but by then it wouldn't matter that we'd never gotten up because it would be time to go to bed again."

She laughed. "Sounds like a pretty good plan!"

He smiled and pulled her closer when she snuggled up next to him just like she had the night before. He paused for a moment to think about why he was so relaxed and carefree and found he couldn't understand the change. Just last night he'd been worried, tense, and unhappy, but this morning he felt relaxed and glad, just like a man who was about to get married and was happy about it. How had that happened? He thought about it while Lyssa smoothed his hair (that was _infinitely_ relaxing) and he felt his eyes close of their own accord. He would be more than happy to stay in that exact spot for the rest of his natural life.

Words appeared behind his closed eyelids, surprising him. His eyes popped open but he fought them closed again, concentrating. What were the words?

NICE, he saw. FEELS GOOD. NICE MATE. GOOD.

A suspicion formed in his mind. "Um, Lyssa? Could you answer a few questions for me?"

She looked at him. "Of course. What is it?"

"Well, the virus I have. I've been wondering about it. Can it influence my emotions?"

"If it feels it's necessary to do that," she confirmed. "If you've been feeling stressed and unhappy, then it will do something to make you feel better, especially since your moods influence its…well, I guess you could call it its environment."

Daniel thought about that. "What if I'm angry?"

"Then it will attempt to calm you if it feels your anger is going to get out of control," she explained. "Sometimes, if you're depressed, it will help you feel glad, or if you're sick or hurt, it will help you heal. It can influence your emotions and your physical body."

"Can it read my mind? Will it be able to see all of my memories and see every thought I've ever had?"

She shook her head. "It only perceives the thoughts you have at the moment, and if you don't want it to hear or see them, then you block them with a strong mental image."

Daniel filed that information away for consideration later. "Will it communicate on its own with me?"

She smiled. "Once it gets used to you, it will communicate with you often. Sometimes they'll communicate with you all the time unless it bothers you or distracts you. Is the virus talking to you now?"

He closed his eyes and checked. Same words. "I think so. It can talk to me, but can I talk to it?"

"Sure you can. All you have to do is think what you want to say. Try to imagine seeing the words you want to say the same way you see the words they say to you."

Daniel thought about what he wanted to say, took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and thought the question he wanted to ask. "WHAT ARE YOU CALLED?" After all, most self-aware beings had names, didn't they?

At first, he saw nothing, but then words became clear. WE ARE CALLED AHROSH.

AHROSH? Daniel thought back.

AHROSH, they confirmed. YOU ARE DANIEL.

YES.

YOU ARE COMFORTABLE? AT EASE?

This was surprising. Why would they ask that? YES, he admitted. VERY COMFORTABLE. DID YOU DO THAT? HELP ME RELAX AND BECOME COMFORTABLE?

YES.

He knew it! WHY DID YOU DO THAT?

YOU WERE WORRIED AND UNHAPPY, they explained. WE WANTED TO HELP YOU FEEL BETTER.

WHY?

This seemed to throw them as there wasn't an immediate answer. After a few minutes, one formed. WHY NOT? WHEN YOU ARE HAPPY AND AT EASE, IT IS ALWAYS BETTER NOT JUST FOR YOU BUT ALSO FOR US.

Oookaaayy. He opened his eyes and turned to Lyssa. She was smiling. "What did you ask them?"

He told her their discussion almost word-for-word and then asked her if she knew why they'd begun influencing his emotions. As far as he could tell, they never had before.

"You were unhappy for several days, Daniel," she said. "All cooped up, very little company, and you were angry with my parents for doing that to you. Still angry, I should say, but maybe all that unhappiness and anger made the virus sit up and take notice. Maybe the virus felt it should do something about the situation."

"I see," Daniel said thoughtfully. "Do you think they would stop if I asked them?"

"I don't know," Lyssa admitted. "The virus varies from person to person, I think. Sometimes they influence a person's mood a great deal, sometimes a little, and sometimes not at all."

Daniel nodded and closed his eyes again. STOP INFLUENCING MY MOOD. Hey, this way of communicating was pretty easy. Who knew?

Their answer came immediately. WHY?

I DON'T LIKE IT WHEN OTHER PEOPLE INFLUENCE MY FEELINGS. It might sound crazy, but for a minute he could have sworn that they were surprised by his request.

YOU WILL BE TENSE AND WORRIED IF WE STOP, WHICH IS NOT GOOD FOR YOU, they told him. WE WILL LESSEN THE EFFECT, BUT WE WILL NOT STOP IT ENTIRELY.

ANY WAY I CAN CONVINCE YOU TO STOP IT ENTIRELY? Daniel wanted to know.

NO. Some of the happy-go-lucky feeling faded and he felt himself go back a bit toward the on-edge feeling he'd had the night before, but it was nowhere near as bad as it had been. Okay, he could work with this. THANK YOU. CAN I ASK YOU SOMETHING?

WHAT IS IT?

Was it his imagination, or did he sense a feeling of curiosity coming from them? He was almost certain of it.

WHY DID YOU SAY 'NICE MATE' A LITTLE BIT AGO?

Amusement. Quite a lot of it, in fact. BECAUSE SHE WILL BE. SHE IS GOOD FOR YOU AND YOU WILL BE GOOD FOR HER. Their collective "voice" was thick with approval. ANY OFFSPRING WILL BE HEALTHY, AND OFFSPRING ARE ALWAYS GOOD.

First the Rulers wanted him to "do something" about the lack of future heirs for the throne and now the virus wanted him to do the same thing! Would the embarrassment never end?

NO.

Oh, great. So he had a sentient and sapient virus living in his body, it could influence his moods and hear his thoughts, _and_ it had a sense of humor to boot. Fabulous.

"What does the virus say?" Lyssa asked, bringing him out of his thoughts.

"I asked them to stop influencing my moods, but they said they would lessen the effect, not stop it completely," he muttered. "I don't like people mucking about in my head. Makes me nervous."

She rubbed his shoulder as if trying to impart a little calmness to him. "I don't think it ever bothers us since this is the way things have been for generations," she said thoughtfully. "I guess it never occurred to me to think about how it might influence a stranger."

Daniel shrugged. "Eh, don't worry about it," he said. "Does it get easier over time? Talking to them, I mean? Will they start listening to me more?"

She grinned. "If you're lucky they'll do what you ask, but if they think you aren't doing a good job of taking care of yourself, they'll definitely let you know about it."

"I'll keep that in mind," Daniel said quickly as a number of unpleasant scenarios occurred to him. "I wish there was...I don't know...a book that could clearly tell me all about the virus, instead of having to work out bits of its nature from complicated and headache-causing behemoths of print or bothering all and sundry with questions."

Lyssa smiled and sat up. "I think I know just the thing for you, then!" In a flash she was out of bed and scurried into another room. "I know I have it in here somewhere!"

Daniel took this opportunity to get up and follow her. His comfort level of being in the same bed with her had taken a serious nosedive as the viruses--would they be Ahrosh or Ahroshes?--lessened their influence on his emotions.

"Here it is!" she cried as he entered what appeared to be her study. "I knew it was in here!"

"What is it?"

"It's a notebook I kept while I was studying the virus. It gives its most common attributes, the more common attributes it takes on due to its host, and the ways it influences or helps its host. I think this will be easier for you to read than all those books, right?"

"Right!" he said, elated that she was willing to share this information with him. "Thank you, Lyssa."

"You're welcome." She looked as if she were about to say more but a knock on the door drew their attention. "I'd better see who that is."

It was Daniel's valets, there to tell him that his new rooms were ready, his belongings had been taken there already, and he had a great number of things to do that morning, so could he come with them, please?

"I'll see you later," Daniel told Lyssa, resigned to the fact that these men would drive him crazy for at least another day.

"I'm already looking forward to it," she said, giving him a kiss. "See you later, Daniel."

Daniel ignored Cly's chuckle as he followed them out of the room and to all the tasks that had to be done that day.

--

His new rooms were much, much better. They were up on the second floor and set up in an L shape that allowed him to have access to a private rooftop patio from two different rooms, his sitting room and his bedroom. The patio was filled with potted plants and even a garden box that held a flowering tree. The rooms themselves were bright and airy, decorated in light shades of color and with large windows to admit plenty of sunlight. As soon as he was alone in these new rooms he opened all the doors and windows to let the place fill up with fresh air. He wandered through them, checking to see if all his things had made the journey unscathed and was pleased to find that they had. He was in his study, organizing his books and trying to find a place to put the notebook Lyssa had given him when he heard someone in the outer room.

"Daniel?"

He winced. It was Mara. He slid the book into a drawer in the desk and went out to meet her. "Hello, Mara." There. He was being polite. No problem.

She smiled. "I take these rooms are much more to your liking?"

"Much, yes," he confirmed. "Thank you."

"You are welcome. I came to give you these," she said, holding out several folders. "These are files on several men who I think would make good valets for you. The choice of them is up to you, though. Two to four would be a good number of valets."

"Thank you," he said, taking the folders.

"I've already spoken to my daughter today," Mara said brightly. "Thank you, Daniel, for telling her so soon. I have rarely seen her so happy."

She looked so happy that for a moment Daniel wanted to pretend that he was actually marrying Lyssa because he wanted to. He didn't want to remind her that everything he was doing was being done under duress, and that he was actually lying to Lyssa with every moment that passed. "I feel like a worm."

She stared at him. "A worm? Daniel, what are you talking about?"

"I am lying to her each moment," he pointed out. "My acceptance of her proposal, my demonstrations of affection, _everything_ I do and say with her is a lie. I'm lying to her because you have given me no choice. I have to choose between being honest and my friends' lives. I hope you and your husband are proud, securing a husband for your daughter who you've forced to lie to her."

Mara shook her head. "Daniel, I'm confident in the fact that eventually, on your part it will not always be a lie. Eventually, you will come to love her. I know you already care for her."

Daniel sighed. "Yes, I care for her. That's why what I'm doing makes me feel so sick."

"It will get better," Mara said firmly. "I promise. In the meantime, remember that you are to say nothing to her. Understand?"

"Of course," Daniel said flatly. "How could I forget?"

Mara nodded. "Stane, Lyssa and I will see you tonight at dinner. Until then, have a pleasant day."

The rest of the morning was taken up by reviewing the files of the prospective valets and making his selections. He chose two men who had high recommendations from previous employers, both of whom had written "respects privacy." One of them had written that the one man had "left me alone if I asked." So, these two men respected privacy and would leave him be if he wanted them to. Perfect. He set their files aside, pushed the others into a little bundle, and gave the two files to Cly, asking him to find the two men and offer them positions. Nothing loath, Cly set off at once and for the first time Daniel realized that Cly might find him just as annoying as he found Cly. Interesting.

Lunch was a quick snack around midday and after lunch Daniel was besieged by Narys for a fitting for his wedding finery. From what Daniel could see of the outift that was being fitted to him, it was going to be ornate and elaborate enough to drive him nuts. There was a shirt, a waistcoat, an overcoat, trousers, gloves, boots, and a belt. All of them were going to be shades of the same color (which hadn't been chosen yet) and embroidered with the sigil of the Rulers' family, putting their mark on him before he even spoke the vows.

That realization made him want to panic.

Supper was little better. Except for Lyssa, the company did not foster a good appetite and the conversation gave him a headache. He was about ready to ask to be excused when suddenly his stomach let out an almighty growling demand for food that could be heard by all present.

"Daniel, you've hardly eaten a thing," Mara admonished him after he'd apologized. "You should eat."

He fought the sudden inclination to tell her that he would eat better if the present company were _not_ present. "I'm fine," he said, reaching for his fork. Suddenly, he was _starved_ and so hungry that it was almost painful. What the--? He paused and closed his eyes. AHROSH? ARE YOU MAKING ME HUNGRY?

YOU NEED MORE NOURISHMENT, he saw. THE FOOD ON THE TABLE IS GOOD. WHY AREN'T YOU EATING?

Some instinct told him that he would have no peace on the matter if he didn't eat, so he kept up some polite conversation and ate the majority of the food on his plate, actually relaxing enough to accept a bite of sweet cake that Lyssa fed him. He returned the favor, she did the same, and soon they were laughing at each other. While he cleaned his face of erring sugar Daniel reflected that if Stane and Mara hadn't been there, the dinner would have been perfect. Yes, he was coming to like Lyssa more and more--if only he'd been allowed to get to know her on his own terms, rather than being coerced like he was now. Still, wishing for it wouldn't change anything, unfortunately. He had to accept his circumstances and try to work within them somehow. That was all anyone could do.

--

_Daniel's Journal_

_What a day. I told Lyssa last night that I accepted her proposal and I have to admit I've never seen her so happy. The Rulers have made it abundantly clear to me that my friends' wellbeing shall be on my responsibility if I didn't say "yes." What could I do? Of course I said yes. It's official: I'm going to be Lyssa's consort and have to handle all of the responsibilities that position entails. _

_Help._

_If there's a curious alien race wanting to abduct a human, then all they have to do is beam me up. Here that, ET? Come get me! Get me out of here!_

_Oh, well. Wishful thinking. Lyssa loaned me a notebook full of observations and such about the AHROSH and I'm finding it much easier to read than the books I've depended on so far. Those were all theory, this is actual experiences that people have had with this virus. My experience with this thing seems to be no more remarkable than anyone else's, save for the fact that I'm from offworld._

_Every now and then I try to tak talk to them. It's clear that they have my best interests at heart since they encouraged me to eat earlier at dinner and now they're encouraging me to get some rest. I've let them know that I'm fine and that I usually stay up a bit at night to write in my journal. Still, they're getting insistent. I don't believe this. I'm being pushed around by the Rulers and this virus. Will it ever end?_

_Probably not anytime soon. Oh, well.  
_

_I really miss my friends. I'm beginning to wonder if I could get Lyssa on my side so they could come for a visit before the wedding. Something tells me that that won't happen, though. I never catch anyone at it, but I know I'm being watched. It's not enough that I'm giving up my life to be forced into a marriage I don't want so I can spend the rest of my days offworld, now I have to be spied on._

_I've had about enough of this._

--

Lyssa was deeply asleep, dreaming happy dreams and enjoying them. Her present dream was about Daniel. That wasn't surprising at all since all of her dreams had been about him lately. She was dreaming that they were birds, flying together in the skies and reveling in flight, but suddenly the dream changed when two other birds swooped down out of the sky and attacked him, digging in with their talons and tearing at his wings until they were shredded. He plummeted toward earth and she followed, trying in vain to reach him before he fell to his death. She found him still alive in a walled garden, his wings useless ruins of themselves, tattered remnants that would never help him fly again. The garden they were in was a beautiful place, but for a flightless bird it would be a prison. She woke weeping, wondering what that dream could have meant and how she could try to make it better.


	18. Chapter 18

Chapter 18

Time was a very contrary creature. When you wanted time to go quickly, it crawled by, and when you wanted time to slow down it achieved light-speed capabilities. It was single-minded, relentless and rarely, if ever, on your side.

Time was against him now with a vengeance. (In odd moments he wondered what he'd ever done to offend it and why it was choosing now to turn against him.) Seconds flowed into minutes, minutes into hours, hours into days, and days into weeks. With each passing second, minute, hour, day, and week the wedding loomed closer. All of his lies were beginning to weigh him down and he found it harder to relax or even think. The AHROSH did their best to keep him calm, but there were times when his nerves made it impossible for them to handle his mood. Whenever that happened they practically had to put him to sleep to calm him, and when that happened valuable time was lost.

His days were very full. Every day he had meetings with Narys who coached him on society and its rules, what the expectations and responsibilities of a consort were, and most important of all, how to carry out each of his responsibilities associated with the wedding. The one time he found himself enjoying those lessons was when several shop and business owners arrived in his quarters one day, bringing items from which he was supposed to choose a wedding gift for Lyssa. That part was easy. Choosing a gift for a woman was rarely easy, but oddly, it was easy this time. What was hard about this present shopping session was remembering everyone's title and what it was they did and why he should care.

If it weren't for the AHROSH, he would have never slept, never eaten, and never remembered to take a break. If Jack had known that the AHROSH were taking such good care of him he would have called them the greatest thing since The Simpsons, but Jack wasn't there. None of his friends were, and he missed them so much that it almost hurt. Each passing second he spent without his friends, he hurt.

YOU WILL SEE THEM SOON. The AHROSH sought to comfort him several times a day with that statement, but it failed to make him feel better. His one comfort came from Lyssa, who was always happy to see him and spend time with him. The only times the Rulers wanted to see him was to remind him of their bargain and of his side of it. Lyssa, on the other hand, was a bright presence to banish all the dark thoughts and feelings. He never knew if it was her proximity or the work of the AHROSH, but he relaxed when she was around. The Rulers would leave them alone with indulgent smiles (those smiles usually made his blood boil) but once they were gone he would forget all about them and focus on talking and being with Lyssa. If being married meant they would have more privacy, then he could actually say that part of him was looking forward to the wedding. He said as much to Lyssa and she found the remark terribly amusing.

"I know what you mean," she said, pulling his arm around her. "Just a few hours each evening after dinner doesn't seem enough, somehow. They go so fast that our time together doesn't seem real."

_Doesn't seem real...Doesn't seem real...Doesn't seem real...._

Her words echoed inside his head, making his perception change for just a split second, but then it was back to normal again. What had just happened? Had it been her words, or had it been something else? Was he getting sick? A moment of dizziness and a feeling that something was wrong; that was all it had been, so why was it upsetting him so much?

"Daniel? What's wrong?"

"Um, nothing, really," he hastened to reassure her. "I guess I'm just tired."

"Then you should rest," she said, shifting so that the two of them fell back into the embrace of the pillows behind them. "Much better."

Daniel wasn't so sure about that. The only place available for him to rest his head was her shoulder; maybe getting that close wasn't a good idea before they were officially married? It might lead to other things and he wasn't so sure he was ready for that yet. The wedding night was soon enough! Abruptly, the choice was taken out of his hands altogether as she reached up and guided his head so it rested just where he'd been hesitant about placing it. "There," she said. "Comfortable?"

"Uh...yes," he admitted. Actually, he wasn't comfortable with the idea that this could lead to places he didn't want to go just yet...

DON'T BE DIFFICULT, DANIEL, the AHROSH told him. SHE IS HELPING YOU RELAX.

YOU STAY OUT OF THIS, Daniel told them sternly.

YOU AND SHE SHOULD SPEND TONIGHT TOGETHER.

He nearly choked. AHROSH communication was complex: You received emotions, sensations, and mental pictures in addition to the words you saw, and with mental pictures like _that_ there was no mistaking what they meant!

IT WOULD BE GOOD FOR YOU, they persisted. YOU'LL FEEL MUCH BETTER.

ABSOLUTELY NOT, he insisted. NO.

WHY NOT?

THAT'S NO ONE'S AFFAIR BUT MY OWN.

He received no words in response to that, but he did catch that they felt he was being unnecessarily stubborn. After all, according to what he'd read in the notebook Lyssa had given him, times when a host experienced intense feelings, like being in love (or its physical expression) the AHROSH enjoyed the experience right along with their host. Why wouldn't they want to experience something they saw as a potentially enjoyable experience? They could shield themselves if they liked (that was why they could sometimes inflict pain on their host in order to protect themselves from being hurt) but right now they had no reason to. Quite the contrary, they had every reason to encourage him. Endorphins were like candy to them and like many humans and other creatures, the AHROSH had a bit of a sweet tooth.

Lyssa chuckled, bringing him out of his thoughts. "What's so funny?"

"My AHROSH are reminding me that after tonight we'll both be so busy that we'll hardly get a chance to spend any time together, and certainly not any time _alone_ until the wedding night. They're saying we should take advantage of the time we have together tonight." He looked up at her, not believing what he was hearing and to his panic he saw that she was completely serious.

"Umm..."

"I wouldn't be averse to it, Daniel. In fact, I'm more than a bit eager. Aren't you?"

How to answer that question? More to the point, _could_ he? Without dying of embarrassment, that is.

"It's not that...um, it's not that I don't want to, it's that I feel it isn't right without being married first," he said in a rush. "You see, I spent a good deal of time with a group of people who kind of adopted me and became my family, and they were very old-fashioned and reserved. I guess I've taken on a few of their characteristics. You see, in their culture couples didn't become intimate with one another without being married to one another beforehand. It's better to wait."

Lyssa blinked and looked at him as if surprised. "Oh." She stared at the floor, cheeks burning and Daniel could tell that she was embarrassed and more than a bit hurt. Oh, crap.

"It's not that I don't find you attractive," he said quickly. "You are. You're stunning, in fact."

She risked a glance at him and he could see more than a few doubts and worries in her eyes. His mind froze in panic. What could he say? What could he do? He couldn't leave her thinking that he didn't like her!

WE CAN HELP, the AHROSH said quickly. JUST ACCEPT IT.

WAIT A SECOND, he said just as quickly. WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO DO?

They didn't answer, but a second later warmth suffused him, making him feel relaxed and warm. Of their own volition, his hands reached up to either side of her face, smoothing back her hair. In the next moment he was giving her a kiss that quickened her pulse and sent his own through the roof. What the hell was going on? WHAT ARE YOU DOING? he demanded, feeling this was hardly fair to either of them.

WE ARE SALVAGING THE SITUATION, they said. YOU WERE CERTAINLY MAKING A COMPLETE MESS OF IT.

HOW ABOUT YOU LET ME MAKE MY OWN MISTAKES? Daniel suggested acidly. AND STOP CONTROLLING MY BODY! He hadn't even known they could do something like this, not to this degree of control! The notebook he'd been reading hadn't gone into this kind of detail!

NOT NOW; WE'RE HELPING. JUST GO ALONG WITH IT AND TRY TO ENJOY IT.

That statement sent his panic level into orbit. WHAT DO YOU MEAN, 'GO ALONG WITH IT'?! ENJOY _WHAT_??!!

They didn't answer and there was nothing he could do as he kept kissing Lyssa, except that it wasn't _him_ doing the kissing. More than once what he was experiencing made his mind go blank and from the few seconds he managed to fight his eyes open, he could tell that Lyssa's mind was just as blank. He wanted nothing more than to spend the rest of his life doing this and at the same time he wished it had never happened. It wasn't him kissing her; the AHROSH were doing that.

The warmth surrounding him leveled off, leaving him gasping for breath. His arms were around her, holding her close, and his mouth was right next to her ear. "After experiencing this, don't you think a little bit of anticipation, a little bit of _waiting_, would be rather nice?" It was his voice, his jaw was moving, but they were not his words. "I think it would be quite enjoyable, myself."

She looked up at him, smiling, her face filled with love and she nodded. "I think I would enjoy this kind of waiting."

He wanted to _kill_ the AHROSH. Now she would be expecting more of the same come the wedding night and he wasn't sure if it was possible.

IT WILL BE, they said. WE'LL HELP YOU.

He wanted to tell her what had happened. He wanted to tell her that it hadn't been him kissing her or holding her, but again the AHROSH stepped in. "Then we should both go get some rest. The next few days are going to be busy ones and we'll need our rest to withstand all this waiting."

If anything her smile grew broader and with a final kiss, she all but danced out of the room.

HOW COULD YOU _DO_ SOMETHING LIKE THAT?! Daniel demanded, fighting down angry tears. WHAT WERE YOU THINKING?!!

WE WERE THINKING OF YOUR AND HER NEEDS, the AHROSH said bluntly. YOU ARE GOING TO BE MARRIED WITHIN A FEW SHORT DAYS. ONCE YOU ARE MARRIED, THEN IT WILL BE ALL RIGHT TO DO THESE THINGS WITHOUT WORRYING ABOUT THEM, DANIEL.

Daniel thought about all the things that could have happened and how easily the situation could have gotten out of control. WHAT YOU DID TO THE BOTH OF US WASN'T RIGHT, he said. IT WAS AWFUL. IT WAS _WRONG._

WE WERE THINKING OF YOUR NEEDS, DANIEL, they admonished. IT WAS NOTHING LIKE YOUR EXPERIENCE WITH HATHOR.

I THINK I KNOW MY NEEDS BETTER THAN YOU DO, he said flatly, wishing that he hadn't remembered that experience and that they hadn't picked up on it. THAT WAS WHAT IT FELT LIKE TO ME. DON'T YOU TAKE CONTROL OF MY BODY AGAIN, DO YOU UNDERSTAND?

NO, DANIEL. He could feel the frustration coming from them. YOU DO NOT KNOW YOUR NEEDS AT ALL. THAT IS WHY YOU WORK YOURSELF INTO FATIGUE AND FORGET TO EAT. YOU DO NOT TAKE TIME FOR YOURSELF WHEN YOU NEED IT. THAT IS WHY YOU ARE SO STRESSED AND TIRED MOST OF THE TIME. AS FOR CONTROLLING YOUR BODY, IF WE FEEL YOU ARE HURTING YOURSELF, WE WILL TAKE CONTROL IN ORDER TO STOP YOU.

He sat there, completely in shock. He couldn't believe what he was hearing.

DO YOU UNDERSTAND, DANIEL?

THIS IS MY BODY, Daniel told them, reaching for calm. YOU HAVE NO RIGHT TO DO THIS. YOU HAVE NO RIGHT TO MAKE ME DO _ANYTHING_ I DON'T WANT TO DO.

OF COURSE WE DO, they answered calmly. IF YOU HURT YOURSELF, WE ARE HURT TOO, SO WE HAVE EVERY RIGHT TO MAKE SURE THAT YOU'RE IN THE BEST OF HEALTH AND THAT ALL OF YOUR NEEDS ARE MET. YOU'RE BEING NEEDLESSLY STUBBORN, DANIEL. STOP BEHAVING LIKE A CHILD.

This was almost too much to bear. Behaving like a _child_?

IT IS LATE, YOU ARE TIRED, AND YOU SHOULD GO TO BED, the AHROSH said with a tone of finality.

WE'RE NOT FINISHED DISCUSSING THIS! Daniel protested. There was no way he was giving in on this issue and there was absolutely no way he was just going to give in and go to bed when told to!

WE ARE FINISHED, the AHROSH retorted. WILL YOU GO TO BED ON YOUR OWN, OR WILL YOU REQUIRE OUR ASSISTANCE?

The possibility that they were going to take control of him again clinched it. He couldn't believe it: He was being bullied by the Rulers, by his old valet Cly (he still lurked in the background on occasion) and now he was being bullied by microscopic beings in his own body! WE ARE GOING TO DISCUSS THIS AGAIN IN THE MORNING.

AS YOU PLEASE, the AHROSH said coldly. GO TO BED, DANIEL.

Feeling as if he'd lost any and all control over his life, Daniel went to his room and prepared for bed. Hopefully, he would think of something by morning. As he lay in bed and thought about everything that had happened, he found himself wondering just how much the AHROSH had influenced the people who were their hosts, and how often and to what degree they took control for their hosts' "own good."

--

Colonel O'Neill, Major Carter, and Teal'c came at a run when the intercom ordered them to the control room. To everyone's surprise, Carter beat both of her teammates there by several seconds and nearly ran into the general. "Sir? Is it about Daniel?"

"Yes, it is," Hammond said, sounding worried. "He's on the radio."

As one the entire team dove for the microphone, but Jack squirmed around so that the reached it first. "Daniel? Danny-boy? That you?"

_"Hi, Jack,"_ they heard come through the active Gate. _"It's good to hear your voice. How are you?"_

"Forget about that, how are you?" Jack demanded. "Are you okay? What's been happening?"

_"Um, a lot, really."_

"Well, don't leave us hanging, here, tell us!"

Silence.

"Daniel, if you hung up, so help me _God_ I'm gonna--"

_"No, I'm still here, it's just...well, it's kind of hard to explain all that right now. The real reason I'm calling is to invite you all to a wedding."_

This time it was Daniel's turn to hear silence. _"Jack?"_

"Daniel! You didn't!"

_"Well, I didn't really have a choice, Jack."_

"'No' is a simple word, Daniel! It's very easy to say!"

_"I didn't have a **choice**, Jack."_

Daniel's tone brought everyone up short and thankfully, it made Colonel O'Neill be quiet.

_"Look, I'm begging for you guys to come," _Daniel said into the silence. _"Please, please come to the wedding. I **need **you guys to come. Pack for just a couple days, bring something nice to wear, and stand in for my family during the ceremony. You guys are the closest thing I have to one, you know. If I could get away with it I'd invite the whole base to come, but I'm pretty sure my future in-laws wouldn't appreciate that. General Hammond, you and Janet are invited too. I'd love to see both of you."_

It took all of ten seconds for General Hammond to nod his head. "You have a go, people. SG-1, go pack. I'll inform Doctor Frasier and tell Dr. Jackson our ETA is one hour."

Jack saved Hammond the trouble when he grabbed the microphone again. "One hour, Danny-boy. Got me? You'd better be on the other side of that Gate waiting on us!"

_"Can do, Jack. I'll be here. Can't wait to see all of you. Really."_

Fifteen minutes later SG-1 was pacing the floor at the foot of the ramp, impatient and on-edge.

"Why the heck did we need an hour to get ready? We're all here and ready to go. What's with this hour business?" Jack muttered, pacing.

"To give me plenty of time to get my things together," Janet said as she marched through the door. "Although I didn't take nearly as long as I thought. I'm going, and I fully intend on making an examination of Daniel. For that, I'll need supplies."

Jack stepped back as Janet came forward toward the ramp. She had a look on her face that suddenly made him very nervous. It reminded him somewhat of her "mama bear" mode and her "take no prisoners, show no mercy, give no anesthetic to wrongdoers" expression.

"All ready, Doctor?" Hammond asked as he walked into the room, wearing BDUs, lugging a pack and carrying a garment bag over his shoulder.

"Sir?" Jack said. "You're coming, too?"

"Of course," Hammond told him. "You heard Dr. Jackson; I'm invited, too, and I'm going. Daniel's going to need as many people on his side as he can get."

Sam grinned. "Put that way, sir, who can argue?"

"Nobody, since I'm in command here," Hammond chuckled. He turned and looked up at the control room. "Walter, dial it up!"

Walter gave them a thumbs up and the Gate started to spin. The chevrons lit up, the Gate roared to life, and SG-1, Hammond, and Dr. Frasier headed up the ramp.

--

Daniel's heart hit the underside of his chin when the first chevron clunked and lit up. With a supreme effort of will he stayed by the DHD out of the way of the energy stream, hoping that they were all coming. Hopefully, Jack wouldn't be too mad to pass up a chance to yell at him. He'd gladly listen to Jack shout himself hoarse if it meant that his friends could come to this planet and neutralize whatever little bug the Rulers had infected them with.

He'd fully expected the shouting, but that wasn't what he got. Instead, a very quiet and decorous SG-1 led by an even quieter Jack came down the stairs in front of the Gate. General Hammond and Dr. Frasier were right behind them and none of them said a word.

They were all expecting a tired and sedate Daniel, but what they got was a Daniel Jackson who had suddenly taken flight. Within seconds he was in Jack's arms, then Sam's, then Teal'c's, then the general's, and then Janet's. Then he started all over again.

"Aw, heck," Jack said. "Let's save him a little trouble. Group hug!"

"Hi, guys," Daniel said happily from the middle of the bundle of people.

"Hi, Danny," Jack answered. "How are you?"

"Much, much better, now that you're here," he said truthfully. "You can't believe how much better I am."

The hugs started all over again and suddenly Sam noticed that Daniel's eyes were red. "Daniel, are you crying?"

"I'm just really glad to see you," Daniel said before burying his face in a handkerchief. "Really relieved, actually. They were pretty mad about our going camping and I was worried that they wouldn't let you guys come back."

"Undomesticated equines could not keep us away, Daniel Jackson," Teal'c assured him.

Daniel laughed and for the first time in a while, the laugh wasn't tinged with panic.

--

It didn't take them long to get back to the palace. Daniel's guards (Jack recognized one of them as the jerk who'd found their campsite) turned them all over to Daniel's valets and let them go inside with a minimum of fuss. Daniel himself showed them to their rooms and saw that they got settled in while Janet took Daniel to his room to give him an exam. They'd just finished when SG-1 came in.

"How is he, Doc?"

"Well, physically, he's a little run down and the virus has proliferated, but other than that, I don't see anything that will require a great deal of worry."

"This may help you with information about the virus," Daniel said, holding out one of his notebooks. "The information Lyssa gave me was written in their script, but I translated it for you and wrote it all down. It could prove useful."

Janet grinned. "It could prove a treasure trove!" she said, taking the book. "Thank you, Daniel!" She started flipping through the book while Sam looked over her shoulder, but Jack's attention was drawn to something else. Something red and gold and draped on a clothing rack in the far corner of the room.

"Daniel? What's that?"

Daniel looked where Jack was pointing and seemed distinctly uncomfortable before muttering something.

"Sorry?" Jack said.

"I said, that's my wedding outfit," Daniel said, slightly louder.

"I thought it was this on the chair," Sam said, looking at a blue and green outfit.

"That's what I wear for the ceremonies tonight," Daniel clarified. "The red outfit is what I wear tomorrow."

All of them stared at it. Bright red silky fabric, heavily embroidered with gold thread and what looked like gold diamonds. There were pants, shirt, vest, boots, gloves, belt, and a long coat, with a high color, all of it covered with embroidery, but only the coat had the jewels.

"They don't actually expect you to wear that," Jack said, staring at the coat that swept the floor.

"Red is considered a good-luck color for the groom," Daniel explained. "Lyssa incorporated red into the color scheme on her mother's suggestion. I think the Rulers are taking no chances on this wedding. The priests have been saying blessings all week, I think, and I've been drilled relentlessly. Hopefully everything goes off without a hitch."

All of them were staring at him.

"Correct me if I'm wrong, Daniel, but am I right in thinking that all of a sudden you want to go through with this farce?" Jack said, sounding more than a little freaked-out.

"I do care for Lyssa, but I don't want to marry her," Daniel assured him. "I really don't, but I don't have a choice."

"Of course you have a choice," Teal'c said. "You can tell them no."

Daniel decided to nip this debate in the bud before it could turn into an argument. "Guys, I am _really_ glad you're here. Like I said before, I don't have a _choice, _even though I don't want to do this." This was the only way he could think of to tell them without breaking his agreement with the Rulers. Hopefully they would pick up on what he was _not_ saying...

Something in his tone drew their attention. "They're forcing you to do this, aren't they?" Janet wanted to know. "How?"

Sam was thinking. She remembered Daniel saying how glad he was--no, that he was _really _glad--that they were there. "Does this lack of choice have anything to do with us?"

The look on Daniel's face said it all.

"Rat bastard," Jack swore, breaking into his usual string of profanities. "They did something to us, didn't they?"

The look on Daniel's face grew stronger.

"And you're not allowed to talk to us about it," General Hammond deducted.

The look grew even stronger.

"And you are not allowed to talk to Lyssa about it," Teal'c added.

The look intensified even more and Jack started swearing again.

"You know, Jack, someone's going to hear you if you get much louder," Daniel said after a few moments.

"I don't care!" Jack snarled, ready to take off a couple Rulers' heads as he thought about what could have been done to them. "What they did to us--is it anything like yours?"

The expression on Daniel's face said that it was.

"Janet would have found it, though," Sam protested.

"If she knew how to find it," Jack added. "Ten to one it's something that's even sneakier than Daniel's."

During Jack's ranting Teal'c had been thinking. "Daniel Jackson, you said you were very glad we were here. This thing that was given to us. Is it part of the reason why you were so glad to see us back on this planet?"

Again, the affirmative look let them know they were on the right track.

"You said you _needed_ us to come to the wedding. Was something going to happen to us if we didn't?" Sam asked.

Again the look.

"You could just say it," Jack muttered, feeling impatient.

Daniel shook his head. "I can't. Besides, you guys are doing fine."

"I think that thing--the virus, or whatever it was that was given or done to us was designed to make us sick or something if we didn't come back within a certain amount of time."

Daniel's expression confirmed this.

Jack started swearing again and this time the general stepped in. "At ease, colonel."

"Thanks," Daniel said. "I know you guys aren't happy about this. I'm not, either."

Sam was still thinking. "I think this is the reason why you haven't tried to get away or anything. They told you to behave or they wouldn't let us come back, is that it?"

Again, the look on his face said it all.

Jack started cursing again, but this time it was under his breath so the majority of them couldn't hear him.

A knock on the door interrupted him.

"Yes?" Daniel called.

The door opened, revealing a young man. "Dr. Jackson, it's time for you to get ready."

"Thank you," Daniel told him. "I need ten minutes. Ah, menas," he corrected himself.

The valet nodded and left, leaving them alone.

"Janet, Sam, could you do me a favor?" Daniel asked, picking up the blue and green outfit.

"Sure," Sam said quickly. If she could get a word with Lyssa...

"Go keep Lyssa company while I get ready. Her ladies-in-waiting are helping her dress and according to Lyssa they drive her crazy. She needs someone normal right now. Could you do that?"

"Sure," Janet said, more than eager to see Lyssa again. She'd rarely seen her on their other visits, but the little Janet had seen, she'd liked.

"Oh, one more thing," Daniel added as they headed toward the door. "You can't tell her. The Rulers would find out, you guys would be sent home, and I wouldn't see you again."

Both of them nodded, bitterly disappointed. As they left, it wasn't only Jack who was cursing.

Once the girls were gone, Daniel got dressed with the help of Jack, Teal'c and General Hammond. The blue and green outfit was complicated with layers and ties for fastenings, so it was a bit of work to get into it.

"What happens tonight?" Jack asked as he tied the last fastening and Daniel checked his appearance in the mirror.

"Um, first I greet Lyssa, then I go to the outdoor chapel for the candle-lighting ceremony and the recitation ceremony. I've been coached on both ceremonies, thank goodness. To do something wrong tonight would be considered a bad omen or something like that."

"Let's have some fun," Jack said devilishly. "Mess up on purpose. See what that does."

Daniel grinned. "Don't think I wouldn't love to do it, but I can't."

"Ah. Everything has to go well, I take it?"

"You got it."

"Rat bastard," Jack muttered again.

Daniel's friends escorted him to his meeting with Lyssa and then tagged along to the outdoor chapel, but the priests there to witness the ceremony asked them to wait just inside the door since Daniel could only go through the ceremony alone. They watched through the glass doors as Daniel walked a certain number of times around the outdoor chapel and then began lighting candles in a certain order. An hour and a half later all the candles were lit and then it was time for Daniel to do the recitation ceremony.

The priests watching with SG-1 were kind enough to explain the ceremonies to them, although Jack could have done without the lecture. Daniel liked listening to lectures, not him. According to the priests, the candle-lighting ceremony was symbolic of Daniel lighting an ideological light that would shine for future generations. That light would help keep ignorance at bay, but since learning came by degrees, many candles lit at different times were required, instead of just one or lighting a big bonfire in their place. The recitation ceremony was a ritual of preparation for his new role as consort and the responsibilities that came with it. They watched him walk around the outdoor chapel, saying the prescribed prayers under his breath (General Hammond and Sam both wondered how long it had taken Daniel to memorize them) and stopping every now and then in the right spots. The candle-lighting ceremony took forever, but in Jack's opinion, this one was taking eternity and then some. How many prayers did he need to say, anyway?

Just as Jack was getting ready to ask how much longer this would continue, Daniel moved to the center of the chapel and sank down on one knee, head bowed and his hands clasped in a prayerful attitude. The priests went out, surrounded Daniel, said a few words, and then Daniel was free to come back inside.

"Well done, my son," one of the priests was saying as Daniel got close enough for his friends to hear what was being said. "You did everything perfectly."

"Glad to hear it," Daniel said as one priest scurried inside to a waiting pitcher and poured Daniel a glass of something. A moment later he scurried back and held the glass out to Daniel, who took it and drained its contents, turned, and threw the empty glass against the wall, shattering it.

"Well done!" the enthusiastic priest said, clapping Daniel on the back. "Absolutely perfect!"

"Thank goodness," Daniel sighed. "Is there anything else I need to do?"

"You just have to see your lady for a few moments," said the helpful one. "She's on her way."

He needn't have spoken, for in the next minute Lyssa came through the door and all but flew into Daniel's arms before giving him a kiss that almost sent him reeling.

"Hello, Lyssa," he said once he caught his breath. "You were watching?"

"Upstairs, with Mother and Father," she confirmed. "Mother almost fainted when we heard them tell you that you'd done everything right! She was afraid that something would go wrong!"

"How could anything go wrong?" Daniel chuckled. "I've been drilled on these ceremonies every day!"

Lyssa flashed him a brilliant smile before kissing him again.

And again.

And again.

"Enough!" one of the priests said, laughing. "You'll have plenty of time for that later. Any more time spent together tonight would be improper for you two. Now, refreshments have been taken to your quarters for the both of you, so you'd best say your farewells now and go upstairs and rest. Tomorrow will be a big day."

"I've no one waiting on me other than Mother," Lyssa said playfully. "So I can stay, can't I?"

Sam had been turning an idea over and over in her mind during the ceremonies and now seemed like the time to share it. "Daniel, do you think Janet and I should introduce the idea of a bachelorette party?"

Daniel grinned. "That would be great," he said, turning back to Lyssa. "Would you like to have a party with Janet and Sam?"

Lyssa's grin echoed his. "I think I'd like that, if they wouldn't mind Mother being there."

"The more the merrier," Sam said. If she could get Mara drunk and give the woman a hangover they would have some sort of revenge for what they'd done to Daniel. Mara deserved a five-alarm hangover for the rest of her life for what she and her husband had done.

"All right, then go have fun," Daniel said, giving her a light, gentle kiss. "I'll see you tomorrow."

With giggle, Lyssa returned the kiss and grabbed Janet and Sam, pulling them out of the room and toward her quarters. "This is going to be so much fun! A real party!"

Jack had to fight down a snicker. "Do you think any of them will be able to walk tomorrow?"

"Oh, I know they will," Daniel said as they took their leave of the priests and headed to his quarters. "Only the lightest of alcohol will be served. It's not considered a good idea to get drunk the night before a wedding, but slightly tipsy is okay."

"Don't these people have _any_ fun?" Jack wondered.

"Not your kind of fun," Daniel told him.

"Darn."

Once they got up to Daniel's quarters they saw that the valets had set up a feast for them and then had left to give them privacy. A nest of cushions surrounded a low table and once all of them had changed into more comfortable garments (ie, their pajamas) they settled down on the cushions, determined to have a good time. Although it was traditional for the bride's father to attend the groom's "bachelor party" if the groom's father wasn't available, Daniel told them that he had asked Stane not to come.

"I told them that General Hammond would stand in for my father tonight," he added. "If you don't mind, sir."

"I'd be more than happy to," Hammond assured him. "What does the groom's father usually do?"

Daniel hesitated and then he said, "Oh, he makes sure that things don't get too rowdy and that no girls show up or are smuggled in. He acts as a chaperon, really."

"What else does he do?" Jack asked, pouring glasses full of some sparkling beverage that smelled faintly alcoholic. "You hesitated before telling us. Why is that?"

"Well, he fulfills another function, but it's not really important."

Teal'c looked at his friend and found he couldn't resist teasing him just a little. "Does the groom's father instruct the groom on how best to please the bride on their wedding night?"

Daniel's blush said it all and they could tell he was wondering just what subtle cues had given that away. "It's not really necessary in my case. I've been married once already, and Stane took the liberty of telling me all that a while ago. He and Mara both, actually. It was pretty annoying."

"Well, since you've already had the 'talk,' let's focus on relaxing and unwinding, huh?" Jack suggested handing out drinks.

It took them two hours to get enough of the weak alcohol into Daniel to get him to loosen up and talk.

"Since you guys have already guessed, we can probably talk about it," Daniel said thoughtfully.

"Are you actually going to go through with it?" Jack wanted to know. He couldn't see Daniel being forced to marry anyone if he didn't really want to. Sha're being the exception, of course...

"Well, I kind of have to," Daniel said while General Hammond topped off his glass. "The choice I had was to refuse to marry her and you guys wouldn't be allowed back. You had to come back due to...well, whatever it was they did, so there _was_ no choice. I couldn't let you guys suffer for my obstinacy."

"You do not have to suffer for theirs," Teal'c pointed out.

"I can't believe I'm about to say this, and it's probably the alcohol talking, but I think you took the only choice left to you," Jack said. "You did what you thought was right, but those two are doing what they have to know is wrong."

"Actually, they think they're doing what's right," Daniel said, nibbling at something that was a cross between a cake and a cookie. "They've secured a husband for their daughter who's not only intelligent and pleasant and kind to her, but they've also secured one that has the right DNA. That's pretty important--no inherited disease allowed, but really, was I the only one? I can't think that I am, but that's water under the bridge, I guess."

Jack noticed that Daniel was showing the first signs of tipsiness. Hoping to encourage him to talk a little more, he topped off his glass again. "What are the chances that you're the only one with the right DNA? What if they're just looking for someone new and different? If that's the case, I could marry Lyssa instead. Or maybe Teal'c could, or even the general here." He grinned and glanced at his CO. "How about it, sir? Would you like to tie the knot again?"

Daniel laughed and very, very carefully put his drink down. "Jack, I think you've had too much. Why on earth would you think of inflicting anyone with those in-laws?"

"Who says you need to be inflicted with them?" Jack demanded. "C'mon, Daniel. You said you can communicate with those little bugs you've got, so tell them that you need to live on Earth. Tell 'em not to go nuts when you're off this world. You can go home and you won't have to worry about becoming consort. How about it?"

"As much as I'd like that, it doesn't work like that," Daniel told him. "Something about the planet keeps them in balance, I guess. Once we leave the planet, something happens that makes them uncomfortable, and soon the discomfort turns into pain. When they're all in pain something happens that makes the host's body shut down. Even if they agreed not to let it happen, they wouldn't be able to stop it."

Daniel had never heard Jack use that particular curse before, but you had to give the man points for creativity.

"It's just a little too neat," Jack ended. "Too pat. It's too easy a way to keep you here."

Daniel thought about that. "Maybe. Maybe not."

Jack thought about something else for a bit. "Now that we've been here, can you refuse to go through with the ceremony?"

Daniel actually looked shocked. "I couldn't do that to Lyssa! C'mon, Jack!"

"You could tell her the truth," Teal'c suggested. "No relationship should be founded on deceit, not even unwilling deceit."

"I know that, and I told the Rulers that, but they felt that my marrying Lyssa and keeping these things from her was the best thing that could happen," Daniel explained. "This morning I tried telling them all that one more time, but they told me not to bring the subject up again if I wanted my friends to be able to keep visiting me. Their words were exactly, and I quote, 'If you wish to have your friends continue visiting you, then this topic is not one that should be mentioned again.'"

"Damn it," Hammond said, surprising all of them. He rarely swore. "None of what they're doing is fair to you, and they just expect you to go along with it."

"That is what makes it so unfair," Teal'c said, sounding depressed.

"I know, but there's really not much I can do about it now," Daniel told them. "I'm just glad you guys are here. Once the wedding is over and all of that, you'll be allowed to come back as often as we like. We can even do what we like as long as my duties as consort don't get in the way. There's this huge lake to the south and going there is like going to the beach. The Rulers have a villa there, and as their son-in-law I can use it to host friends. To the east of the University there's a mountain lodge, and from what Lyssa has said, it's pretty nice, and the surrounding hills are great. We could go out there and go camping and use the lodge as our base."

"You shouldn't be planning vacations; you should be planning what you'll do the next time you go offworld with us," Jack said firmly. "I refuse to believe that you're going to spend the rest of your life on this planet, Daniel."

Daniel shrugged. "I don't want to think that way, either, but I guess that if we do figure a way out of this thing, it won't be for a while. I know Janet and Sam have been working on this, and I know that they're good, but they are still only human. They've got other things to do, and they have lives of their own, so they can't spend every waking moment trying to fix this. It will take time, and we'll have to give it time. I mean, unless I go offworld, it's not likely I'm going to die from this. We have time."

All of them thought about this for a few minutes, each man lost in his own thoughts. Jack was the one to break the silence. "I still think--"

"Please be silent, O'Neill," Teal'c said, looking carefully at Daniel.

Teal'c surprise order made all of them look where he was looking. There Daniel was, crashed out on the cushions on the floor, dead to the world.

"Aww," Jack said, delighted once again that Daniel was Daniel. "You know, if the girls at the base saw this..."

"I'd have to assign a protection detail," Hammond said fondly. "He wouldn't have a chance."

"I think we should take that as our cue, everyone," Jack said, getting up and moving over the bed. Several blankets had been left folded across the foot of it and these Jack took back over to their cushion nest. "I'm sure Danny-boy's valets won't mind us sleeping here."

"Would it matter if they did, O'Neill?" Teal'c asked lightly.

"Not in the slightest," Jack confirmed, passing out blankets.

"Never thought I'd be sleeping offworld in the middle of a pile of cushions," Hammond said as he settled in.

"We'll make an interplanetary explorer of you yet, sir," Jack said, covering Daniel up with a blanket.

"Absolutely not," Hammond said quietly as Teal'c dimmed the lights so they could all go to sleep. "My blood pressure can only just take being in command of the SGC, and sometimes it can't take even that. The few times I've been offworld have been more than enough."

"Yeah," Jack agreed. "Especially since that last planet you visited; the one with all the women and hardly any men where three different high-ranking women all decided that we guys on SG-1 were perfect for them..."

"They did call us irresistible," Teal'c said, highly amused.

"Oh, yes, I remember," Hammond chuckled. "_All_ of you needed a protection detail then."


	19. Chapter 19

Chapter 19

It must have been the remnants of alcohol in his bloodstream that gave him odd dreams that night. He dreamed about Daniel and the current predicament he was in, and he dreamed that people came into the room in the middle of the night and prowled around, talking in whispers.

"I thought he didn't have anyone who was going to be with him tonight!"

"His family?"

"No, he doesn't have one!"

"Well, who are these people?"

Jack wished the talking dreams would go away. He was tired, and they were keeping him from going back to sleep.

"They might be his friends."

"I thought they weren't supposed to be here until the ceremony!"

Jack rolled over and sighed. Why couldn't the alcohol dreams just shut up? More importantly, how much alcohol had he had, anyway? He wasn't usually this blitzed even when he wanted to be. He heard Daniel shift around on his cushion and then heard General Hammond give a little snore.

"Wait a second. Doesn't the groom usually have some sort of party in his quarters the night before?"

"Oh, fabulous…"

"You have to be joking! We can't handle all of them!"

"We don't need to. Just him."

Okay, _was_ he dreaming? He fought to open his eyes and brought a hand up to scrub his face to make himself wake up.

"We'd better get out of here. Looks like that one's waking up. We'll come back later."

By the time Jack managed to get his eyes open, sit up, and look around, there was nothing and no one to be seen. The only people with him were the general, Teal'c, and Daniel, and they were all sacked out and dead to the world. Jack sighed, yawned, and dove back into his pillow. Morning would be coming pretty fast.

--

Lyssa woke up, shifted under the covers, and looked around. Sam, Janet, and her mother were all asleep in various spots around the room, and the remains of last night's festivities were spread out over the table. She smiled, thinking of the hilarity they'd caused the night before and wished that they could do that again soon. Even her mother had loosened up and become silly! That had been worth any number of headaches to see. They had eaten snacks (sometimes throwing them up in the air and catching them in their mouths), drunk alcohol (the type of alcohol they'd been given wasn't intoxicating unless it was taken in large amounts, and they'd certainly done that!) and talked, talked, talked. Her mother fell asleep early after having almost an entire jug of alcohol, so she, Sam, and Janet had chatted together and pretended to ignore her mother's snoring.

The conversation she appreciated the most was when both women told her about Daniel. Both of them had spent a lot of time in his company—Sam as his teammate, Janet as his doctor—and both of them could tell her all about him. Sam said he wasn't quite awake in the morning until he'd had coffee and Janet said that Daniel tended to either toss in his sleep or curl up in a ball on his side unless he was sick. Then, she said, he lay flat on his back, was completely limp, and was very hard to wake up. Both of them said that he got a little cranky if he was really hungry and that he was downright savage if there was something wrong and he couldn't fix it.

She smiled and fought down a laugh at some of the other things they had told her. It seemed that Daniel was _shy_ about a lot of things and needed help to relax. Sometimes, they'd said, he practically needed to be ordered to relax and that more than once the team (and Janet and her staff!) had argued about it. A few times the general had been required to step in and Daniel had not liked that.

"Actually, he _hated_ it and he plotted revenge," Sam said thoughtfully. "But he's too nice to actually carry out said revenge, so that's okay."

"What did he do while he relaxed?" Lyssa asked, more than a little curious.

"He complained," Janet said, hugging a pillow like it was her dearest friend. "When he wasn't reading books, he complained."

Lyssa laughed and took a sip of what was in her glass. She usually didn't drink, but this kind of party was fun as long as they didn't get too drunk. Besides, it was probably only going to be this one time.

"Daniel will relax once he gets used to being here and used to you," Sam stated. "It just takes time."

"How long will it take Daniel to get used to me?" she'd asked, curious.

"A while," Sam admitted, yawning. "It was a while before he got used to me or to Teal'c and even longer for Janet, but once he gets used to you, you'll know."

"Yeah," Janet had giggled, taking a sip of her drink. Even though Janet was the smallest of them, she had drunk almost as much as Mother. "Once he got used to me, I knew. I started getting hugs and more than once he left a chocolate bar or coffee on my desk. He started to joke around with me, too."

Sam fell over laughing. "Yeah, he did! He started joking with me, too. Even with Teal'c, but then, Teal'c really didn't get the jokes till later."

Lyssa remembered laughing then until her sides hurt, thinking of the big, serious Jaffa and finding it very hard to believe that he could actually loosen up enough to laugh. They'd gone to sleep shortly after that and now, waking up, Lyssa felt as if everything would be all right. She supposed that every bride had misgivings and worries before her wedding, but perhaps that was natural. From what Sam and Janet had told her, Daniel would get used to her. From that she could infer that once he was used to her, he would be happier than he had been so far. In that frame of mind, she decided to get up and start the long, long process of getting ready.

--

"Sir? Dr. Jackson?"

"Mmmph?"

"Time to get up, sir."

"Mmmph-ph."

"Please, sir."

"Hmm—mmph."

Jack forced his gummy eyelids open and groaned as the sunlight pierced them. Dearest God. Daniel had said that the alcohol wouldn't be that strong! What they'd drunk last night hadn't been strong, it had been almost lethal! From what he'd been hearing, in Daniel's case, it was coma-inducing.

Teal'c sat up, pressed his hands to his head, and groaned. "Is this what is known as a hangover, O'Neill?"

"Yup," Jack said, fighting his way to a sitting position. "Although I don't know why you'd have one, Teal'c. You don't drink alcohol."

"I drank none last night," Teal'c assured him. "Yet, I feel awful."

"Yeah, I feel pretty crummy, myself," Jack commiserated as he made a mental note to mention Teal'c's condition to Janet as soon as he saw her. He got up and moved to the general's side to wake him. "Sir? You okay?"

"Colonel, either you go away or you'll be demoted to airman."

Jack's eyes went wide as he backed away. "Okay."

"Sir?" one of the valets said. "Could you help us wake up Dr. Jackson? He has to start getting ready soon."

"I'll work on Danny-boy; Teal'c, do you feel like brewing some coffee from the stash? I think we'll all need it."

"Coffee, here we come," Teal'c said flatly.

If Jack's head hadn't been pounding so abominably he would have laughed at what Teal'c had said. Instead, he set to waking Daniel up, shaking him and finally washing his face with some cold water.

"What?" Daniel groaned, holding his head. "Jack! What do you want? Can't you see I'm busy?"

"Busy doing what?" Jack wanted to know.

"Dying," Daniel told him firmly, still holding his head.

Jack rolled his eyes. "You act like you've never had a hangover before," he said, shaking Daniel. "Come on."

"Jack, stop! You're violating the dead!"

"I know you're hung over, Danny, so I won't hold that against you," Jack said as affably as he could manage. "It's time to get up."

"Oh, you're joking," Daniel said, rolling over and pulling his blanket over his head. "It cannot possibly be time yet."

"Almost, sir," the same valet said. "Please wake up. We have to get you ready."

Daniel's head came up and craned around so he could look at the valet. "Oh, God. It's today."

"Yes, sir," the valet said, sounding relieved that Daniel was at least coherent.

Daniel did a face plant into the cushion he was lying on and grumbled something.

As one, the valets looked at Jack, who shrugged. "I dunno. Maybe he needs some coffee."

Daniel's head came back up. "Coffee?"

"And we have a winner. How's that coffee coming, Teal'c?"

"It is ready, O'Neill." With that, the big Jaffa brought over the coffee pot and began pouring coffee for all and sundry.

"Oh, Teal'c, you are wonderful. Thanks."

"It was O'Neill's suggestion, Daniel Jackson."

"Well, thank you both."

The aroma of coffee roused General Hammond, and resembling a bear recently awoken from hibernation, he got up, drank two cups of coffee, and disappeared into the bathroom, emerging a half-hour later looking more human. By that time breakfast had arrived and all of them were actually hungry. The valets busied themselves with setting out Daniel's clothes for the day while they ate, and soon Teal'c and Jack had had showers.

"Your turn, Daniel," Jack said, toweling his hair.

Daniel groaned before draining the last of the coffee in his cup. "The ceremony isn't until later."

"It will take a while to get you ready, sir," the valets insisted. "We're ready to beg you if that's what it takes. The Rulers were most insistent on you being ready on time."

Daniel sighed. "Okay. Let's do this."

Jack couldn't keep himself from asking. "What do you guys have to do? Doesn't he just have to wash and get dressed?"

"Well, yeah," Daniel said as he got to his feet. "Just hang around. You'll see."

Jack examined what the valets had laid out on the bed and realized that there was a _lot_ of clothing there.

"What is all this?" General Hammond said, echoing Jack's thoughts.

"The wedding outfit," one of the valets said helpfully. "There are several layers to it."

Jack stared at the amount of fabric covering the bed. "I see that. There's what—three layers?"

"There's the underclothing, the first layer, the second layer, and the final layer," the helpful one said. "Then there's the jewelry and all of that to put on."

"Jewelry?" Teal'c asked, not seeing any.

"Gifts from the Rulers," the first valet said, picking up a box and opening it to show them. "A male consort always inherits these when he marries into the family."

"I'm going to look ridiculous," Daniel said, coming out of the bathroom wrapped in his robe. "Can you imagine what all of that's going to look like?"

"You're going to look wonderful," Daniel's valet insisted. "You looked just fine when you tried it on."

Daniel shook his head, picked up the underclothing and disappeared into the bathroom.

"Why didn't he take all of it?" Jack asked after a minute.

"Because I need help to put the rest of it on," Daniel said, coming back out while tugging on his shirt. "You would not believe the amount of ties and layers and—and--_fuss _this outfit has. I'm gonna kill Narys."

"You say that all the time," the first valet reminded him.

"Well, it's growing truer all the time," Daniel said grumpily, looking at everything he still had to put on.

Jack reflected that underwear was underwear anywhere. It looked like Daniel was wearing boxers and a sleeveless T-shirt. As Daniel tugged on a pair of socks the valets handed him the first pair of pants, which reached to the knee, and then held out a short-sleeved shirt for him to put his arms into. Once he'd settled the shirt on his shoulders the valets began fastening buttons and tying ties to make sure the shirt hung snugly on his body. Following that was a pair of long pants and a long sleeved shirt, both covered with embroidery. The entire outfit took about twenty minutes to drape, fasten, and tie everything that needed it. Once everything was on Daniel was helped on with the vest, coat, boots, and gloves while another valet wrapped the belt around his waist and fastened it.

"Wow," Jack said, staring at the red and gold vision that was his friend.

"Yeah," Daniel said, staring at himself in the mirror for a moment. Carefully, he moved over to a chair and Jack, Teal'c, and the general watched while a valet combed three different concoctions through Daniel"s hair and began to do things to his face.

" What's this?" Jack asked, watching them spread what looked like powder on Daniel's face. "Makeup?"

"Don't tease him, sir," one of the valets said. "You're making him blush and that just makes it harder to do this."

"I _don't _want to talk about it, Jack," Daniel said firmly.

Jack held up his hands in a gesture of surrender. "I'm saying nothing." Still, his face said it all as Daniel endured the makeup. There were different powders for his face and his eyelids, and a stick of something for his mouth and a different stick to be put around his eyes.

"It's got practically no color to it. I mean, you won't even notice it unless you're right in front of you," Hammond said after a minute or two. "What's it supposed to do?"

"It has some religious or traditional aspect to it," Daniel said once the valets let him out of his chair. "The light color is supposed to show that I can't be influenced by nefarious forces or something like that. I don't know. Could we talk about something else, please?"

"Well, what do you think Lyssa's doing?"

--

"It looks _gorgeous_!" Sam said, for the first time regretting her dress uniform.

"Breathtaking," Janet agreed, wishing she had something a little fancier to put on. She and Sam looked drab next to Lyssa.

"Thank you," Lyssa said, examining her reflection. "Do you think Daniel will like it?"

Lyssa's gown was a creation that could make an artist weep. The entire dress was made from a white silk-like fabric and inset with pieces of blue of the same type of fabric. Over the entire dress was a pattern of flowering vines (Mara had told them that the flowers were considered the lovers' flower) done in blue and white embroidery (According to Narys, the same pattern of embroidery had been used on Daniel's outfit), and scattered over the bodice and the skirt were gemstones.

"He's probably a nervous wreck by now but he's not _dead_," Sam said. "He won't be able to look at anything else!" For just a moment, she remembered that Daniel really didn't want this marriage and felt a pang of guilt.

"Major Carter is right," Mara agreed. "He will adore you the moment he sees you."

"I want today to be special," Lyssa said, turning to look at her two friends. "I want it to be something that Daniel will remember fondly. I want him to have good memories of today."

"With all the preparations you've made, daughter, his memories will be glorious," Mara said, giving her daughter a kiss on the cheek.

A knock on the door surprised them all, and the door opened to reveal Stane. "Lyssa! Oh, my daughter, you look wonderful!"

"Thank you, Father," she said, smiling as she hugged her father. "Do you think Daniel will like it even though he's nervous?"

"He may be nervous but he's not _dead_," Stane said firmly.

He would never learn why his wife, his daughter, and her two friends all dissolved into helpless laughter when he said that and he endured quite a few minutes of cluelessness as Lyssa sat down to have her makeup and jewelry attended to.

--

"Please hold still, Dr. Jackson," one of the valets said as they fought to get the jewelry onto Daniel. There were bracelets for each wrist, a pectoral chain that draped over the shoulders (it reminded Jack of a king's chain of office), an ornate choker that fastened about the neck, and last but not least, a circlet for his head.

"I thought you weren't crowned prince yet, or whatever," Jack said, watching the proceedings.

Daniel looked bleakly at him. "I'm marrying into the royal family. Even though I haven't been invested as the consort yet, I'm entitled to wear one during the wedding."

"Oh."

"There," the head valet said, making a minute adjustment to the circlet on Daniel's head. "You're ready."

Daniel glanced at his reflection in the mirror. "Do I dare move? Will any of this fall off if I do?"

"Do you think we don't know what we're doing?" another valet demanded. "Of course not! You can move around. Just remember to lift the back of your coat if you want to take a step back. You don't want to step or trip on it."

"Thank you," Daniel said as they moved away. He looked at himself and Jack could see that he was looking him up and down. His face had no expression to it, but when Jack looked at Daniel's eyes he could tell that the man was somewhere close to despair. He didn't want to go through with this wedding.

Jack was about to offer sympathy (or to persuade the general to authorize an airstrike through the Gate) but the valets descended on him next, fussing at his uniform and insignia and trying to comb his hair.

"I'm fine!" he snapped after a moment. "Come on, guys!"

"Your hair looks like a bird's nest," the valet with the comb said. "Hold still, please, Colonel."

Both Teal'c and Hammond fought down a little smile at the fact that neither of them had hair or O'Neill's lacksadaisical approach to grooming.

"Not a word," Jack said darkly, catching their expressions.

Whatever replies they would have made were promptly forgotten as the doors opened and breakfast was brought in for all of them.

"I love it," Daniel muttered. "The kitchen waits until we're all dressed in our best clothes before they send up anything to eat."

"You can eat what they've brought easily and none of it will drip or leave crumbs," one of the valets said. (Jack found himself wondering if these guys had ever shared their names with Daniel or if Daniel had failed to share those names with his friends. Then again, he had other things on his mind.)

"Who says I feel like eating?" Daniel wanted to know. He paused, staring off into space and he groaned. "Oh, gimme a break!"

"Huh?" Jack said, thoroughly confused.

"The AHROSH," Daniel explained. "They're being difficult." Daniel had spent some time the night before detailing what his communication with the AHROSH were like.

"I see."

"Oh, I wish you did," Daniel said, going to the table and sitting down. "Since I'm not going to get any peace on the matter, let's eat."

They sat down and started eating, and Daniel managed a desultory bite now and then, but they could tell he wasn't really hungry. Jack was in the middle of drinking some very nice fruit juice when a thought occurred to him and he set the cup aside. "So, how did the AHROSH take the alcohol from last night?"

"They're working on getting rid of it," Daniel said. "The good thing is that my headache is almost gone and they want to know just what I drank last night."

"What do they care?" Jack asked. "It's all alcohol, isn't it?"

"I'll be lucky if they let me ever have a drink again," Daniel said dryly. "They're reading me the riot act and then some. I think this is their version of a hangover."

"What, ultra-crankiness?" Jack asked.

"Possibly."

Breakfast didn't take long and Daniel had just set aside his napkin when someone arrived, carrying a wooden box.

"What's this?" General Hammond asked, somewhat surprised.

"This would be my wedding present from Lyssa," Daniel said, getting to his feet and going over to the retainer. "Good morning, Larat."

"Good morning, Learned One," Larat said, bowing. "Her Highness has sent you a wedding gift as a sign of her love."

Apparently, this was one of those rituals that this planet was so fond of.

"I thank Her Highness," Daniel said, taking the box and placing it on the table. He lifted a similar box and held it out to Larat. "I offer this gift as a token of my esteem and utmost respect."

Larat bowed, took the box, and left. Once he was gone, Daniel turned to the box and took a deep breath.

"So, what would you get for a wedding present here?" Jack asked curiously. The box was a good size and it looked a bit heavy.

"Depends on the person receiving it," Daniel admitted. "I'm sure she'll have asked someone who knows me what I'd like. Most likely Sam, I think."

His friends gathered around him while he unfastened the box's clasp and lifted out something rectangular wrapped in white and blue paper. A minute later and it was unwrapped, revealing a book in a cover of toooled wine-colored leather.

"Oh," Daniel breathed, staring at it. He ran his fingers over the cover, following the pattern of the vines and flowers on the leather. He opened it and looked inside, turning over the pages. "It's a journal," he said after a moment, awestruck at the book's splendor.

"What's the writing on the flyleaf?" Hammond asked, catching sight of it.

Daniel read it and actually smiled. "Um, that's private. Sorry, sir, but I won't reveal a lady's secrets."

Was it Jack's imagination, or was Daniel actually tearing up? "So, she got you a journal. What did you get her?"

Daniel smiled and carefully wrapped the book back up. "Ah, I got her jeweled haircombs. They match the ring she gave me, so I figured she would like them." For the first time Jack noticed the ring Daniel was wearing. "I'd heard her complain that she didn't have anything that would really hold her hair back."

While they'd been talking one of the valets had slipped out the door, but now he returned, smiling. "Dr. Jackson? It's time to go down."

"Oh, God," Daniel said, panic momentarily taking over his expression. "Okay. All right. Let's go, guys."

They left the room and headed towards the stairs. "So, is there anything special we have to do?" Jack asked.

"You'll be briefed once we get to the chapel since you guys are going to be standing in for my family," Daniel said quietly. "Someone will come and show you guys where you need to be. General Hammond, since you're standing in for my father you'll be with me."

"Hey, guys!" Sam said brightly as she rounded a corner and met them at the foot of the stairs. "How are you?"

"The less said, the better," Daniel said.

"Feeling sick?" Janet asked as she arrived.

"Hung over," Jack said. "All of us. Even Teal'c."

Janet looked at the Jaffa. "Teal'c?"

Teal'c nodded. "It is true, Dr. Frasier. Even though I drank no alcohol, I am definitely...hung over."

"You certainly look miserable," she said, looking at him closely. "Any other symptoms?"

A frantic voice floated down the hallway toward them. "We send the message that he's to come down and then no one can find him! Oh, this is a nightmare!"

Daniel cracked a smile. "I'm here, Narys!"

Pounding feet heralded the man's arrival. "Oh, there you are! Wonderful! Now, who's standing in for your father?"

Daniel pointed to the general. "This is General Hammond."

"Delighted," Narys said, grabbing the general's hand and shaking it.

Hammond fixed a polite smile on his face and endured having his hand shaken for a full two minutes. "Likewise."

"All right, you'll be with Daniel and I, and all you'll have to do is..."

Jack nearly protested when Narys began to lead the general away, but Daniel hurried to reassure him with a smile. "It's all right, Jack. I'll see you guys in a bit."

"Good luck, Danny," Jack told him.

"Thanks," Daniel told him as Narys shepherded him and the general away. They barely had a moment to take all of this in when one of Daniel's valets arrived and led them off toward the chapel, telling them all that they were supposed to do. To Sam's mind, it was a simple ceremony. Lyssa's relatives who were participating would move down the center aisle and stand to the left. Then, Daniel's "family" would walk down the center aisle and stand on the right. Then, simultaneously Lyssa would be led in from the left while Daniel would be led in from the right, their hands would be tied together with a scarf made of fabric that incorporated all the wedding colors and the vows would be spoken. Once the vows were said they would turn, be presented to the congregation, and walk down the center aisle and out. Once they exited the chapel the scarf binding their hands would be removed, cut in two and a piece would be presented to both sides of the family. Doing so would ensure that both sides of the family had a tangible record of the union.

"Of course, the union won't be official until it's consummated tonight," the valet said, completely unaware of the glare Jack sent in his direction.

"I don't think that'll happen for a while," Jack said, thinking of how shy Daniel could be.

The valet stopped in shock. "Oh, but it has to. If not, then the union would be invalid. They would have to wait a year and do everything all over again."

Jack, Sam, Teal'c, and Janet all exchanged looks and they all knew that they were thinking the same thing. Did Daniel know about this? Did he realize the possible escape this meant for him?

_What do you want to bet that they haven't told him?_ Jack thought, more than a little ticked off. _If I get my hands on those Rulers I'll wring their royal necks._

By that point, they were at the entrance of the chapel, bullied into place by the valet, and two by two, they headed down the aisle. The music they were hearing grew stronger as they went inside and the scent of all the flowers hit them. There were candles everywhere and the place was packed with people. Jack fought the urge to back out the way he'd come, but Sam kept hold of him and made sure he moved forward.

"Daniel's gonna take one look and run for the hills," Jack whispered to her. "He hates huge crowds and he hates being the center of attention."

"We'll be here with him," she whispered back. "D'you think we'll be able to tell Daniel what we learned?"

"I hope so."

They caught sight of Lyssa's relatives waiting up at the front and fell silent. As a group, they were formidable and more than a little scary. Hopefully they wouldn't intimidate Daniel too badly.

_If any of them make Daniel unhappy, I'll end them,_ Jack thought darkly.

As they took their places the music changed and doors on either side of the chapel opened to reveal Lyssa and Daniel. Lyssa was being escorted by her parents and the general was at Daniel's side, looking for all the world like a proud father. Lyssa looked radiant, but when Jack saw Daniel he got very, very worried. Even under the makeup he was white, his eyes were wide, and he looked as if he were about to pass out. Jack looked at Janet and she caught his signal to look at Daniel. She nodded, leaned over and whispered, "He's okay. Just wound up."

Jack raised his eyebrows.

"Trust me," she said.

Daniel's and Lyssa's hands were bound together and for the next hour Jack didn't take his eyes off of Daniel as he said the vows as they were dictated to him and did as he was told. He seemed as if he weren't entirely there, almost as if he were...well, high. He looked as if he were all hopped up on something.

"Janet," Jack whispered. "Take a good look at his face. At his eyes. Look really, really close."

Janet looked and her eyes widened. "I didn't see that before. Sorry, colonel. You're right. He's not okay."

The ceremony wound to a close while all of SG-1, the doctor, and the general all fretted. The vows were said and Daniel and Lyssa were just beginning their journey down the aisle when an explosion deafened Jack. A moment later he felt impact and all was blackness.


	20. Chapter 20

Chapter 20

Waking up with a splitting headache was not Jack's favorite way to greet consciousness. Only waking up staring at a Goa'uld beat that out as his least favorite, but not by a wide margin. When he opened his eyes and felt light lance down into them he groaned and brought his hands up to his face, trying to block out the illumination that was dancing all the way to his retinas.

"Try to open your eyes, colonel, I need to check you over," he heard the familiar voice of Janet Frasier say.

"No," Jack moaned. "Don't make me."

"Please, colonel, you're not the only one hurt!"

That made Jack open his eyes and hold still long enough for Janet to look at him. "You'll be all right, just don't try to sit up right away," she told him. "I'll be back in a moment and I'll explain what happened then."

The moment turned into an hour while Jack fought off the siren call of unconsciousness. His head ached and felt abominable and all he wanted to do was go back to sleep. He didn't really feel like sitting up. Showing all the fortitude of a career soldier, Jack forced himself to stay awake and look around as best he could. There was the skeleton of a structure around him and the basic shape of it made him recognize that he was in the chapel. All around him on the floor lay debris and dust and he could hear people moaning in the background. What the hell had happened?

Sudden thoughts of his team flooded his mind, forcing out the cloudy-headedness. Calling himself a fool and the worst team commander who had ever lived, Jack worked his way to a sitting position and looked around.

"Easy, sir," Sam's voice said from nearby. "You've been out a while."

"Carter?" Jack demanded, trying to twist around. Man, he hurt! "You all right?"

"I'll be fine, sir," she said, moving to where he could see her. "Just a little banged and bruised. How do you feel?"

"About like that, except my head's pounding. Nail through the forehead kinda thing."

Sam smiled. "Yeah, we all feel like that."

"Teal'c? General Hammond? Daniel?"

"Teal'c's fine and General Hammond has a slight concussion," Sam reported. "Daniel's not here."

Jack blinked. "Not here? Where is he? The hospital?" Oh, God…

"According to the people I've spoken with so far, no one knows," she sighed. "He's not at the actual medical center, he's not outside in the bivouac hospital, and he's not here in the chapel."

Jack started struggling to his feet. "We gotta find him."

"Colonel! You stay put!" Janet shouted from across the chapel. "You're not ready to be on your feet yet!"

"Daniel's missing," Jack shouted back. "I'm not sitting on my butt while he's gone and possibly in trouble!"

"If you don't stay in a seated position I'll have to tell General Hammond to send you home!"

Jack glared at his doctor. "Way to kick a man while he's down, doc."

"I'm trying to keep you from doing something stupid!" Janet snapped. "Now will you shut up and let me work, sir?!"

"Carter, if you feel able, go help her," Jack said, lying prone on the floor again. "She's right."

Time seemed to do funny things then. One second he was lying on the floor in the chapel, covered with dust and dirt, and the next, he was lying down somewhere else, staring up at a canvas ceiling. Underneath him he could feel a standard issue cot and a blanket spread over him. Where was he now?

"How are you feeling, sir?" he heard Sam say.

He looked around until he spotted her. "Didn't we just do this, Carter?"

"Yes, sir," she said, smiling. "You look a lot better, by the way."

"Where the heck are we?" Jack wanted to know.

"We're in the bivouac hospital. It was set up on the lawn just outside the chapel. The usual medical center was taken over by the royal family. They were injured pretty badly. Less serious injuries are here."

"How badly were they hurt?"

"Bad enough to scare every doctor that saw them. No one's dead, though. Not yet, anyway."

"And Daniel?" Jack asked. "Has he turned up?"

Sam shook her head. "Just the long coat and the jewelry he was wearing," she said. "Looks like someone took them off him and just left them there."

"And took him?" Jack said, catching on to what Sam wasn't saying. "Why, though? He was doing what they wanted, wasn't he?"

"Yes, he was. I think there's more to this whole thing than what we've seen so far," she said thoughtfully. "You know, the blast that knocked down the chapel was pretty sophisticated. None of the injuries are due to heat from any explosives; instead, they're all from debris. If we'd been in an open field when that blast hit, we'd only have been knocked out. There would have been very little debris to hit us."

"Interesting," Jack admitted, wincing as his head gave a throb. "Ow. Any guesses on how long this headache will last?"

"It should taper off," Sam told him. "Janet told me to tell you that sleep seems to get rid of it more quickly."

"Was that a subtle hint?" Jack commented. "All right. Listen, keep your ears and eyes open, please. As soon as the Rulers or any of their toadies or counselors are awake and functioning, I want to talk to them. We need to find out what's really going on on this planet and why Daniel seems to be paying the price."

"Can do, sir. Have a good rest."

* * *

"I think he's waking up."

"He's been lying so still this whole time."

"Well, the blast hit pretty hard. He'll be fine soon. We just have to wait."

It was the three voices that woke him. He'd been hearing them on the edge of his dreams for a while now, but now they were actually bringing him back into the waking world. When the first pounding throb of the headache hit, he groaned, wishing he could go back to sleep.

"See, what'd I tell you? He's awake!"

Daniel fought with his eyelids to open them. "What? What happened?"

"You were caught in a blast," the first voice said. "Your head will hurt for a while, but you'll be all right. Can you stand?"

"Mm-nmm," Daniel said, trying to brace himself up with his hands as he sat up. Inexplicably, whenever he tried to move one, the other followed. He forced his eyes to focus and saw that his hands were bound. "What's this? Why am I tied?"

"A precaution," said the third voice as hands helped him to his feet. "How's your vision?"

"Blurry, but it's always like that without my glasses. It's no worse than usual," Daniel informed them, noting the lack of anything on his face. "Who are you? Where are we?"

"We're outside of the University," the same voice said. "As for who we are, I am Aldis, and my two companions are Rithan and Maleth."

Daniel remembered the sheer size of the University and figured that he must be pretty far from his friends. "Okay. Um, better question: Why have you three kidnapped me? Where do you intend to take me?"

"We have our reasons," Aldis said. "When we get to where we're going you'll receive a full explanation as to why you've been taken, but until then, you're to keep quiet. Understand?"

It must have been the headache that was making him so compliant, because he just nodded and began to follow where they led. A few eternities later they stopped and he was maneuvered into a sitting position. That was the first time he realized that it was getting dark. He sat there, bemused with the world (his head wasn't quite clear yet) and idly observing the three men as they set up a camp and lit a fire before preparing a meal. Not long after that a plate of food was put in front of him and he was ordered to eat. Awkwardly, he fed himself with his bound hands, finishing off practically every last bit on his plate. Apparently, since it was now evening and he'd had no lunch, it had been a while since his last meal.

"I think he likes it," one of the men—was it Rithan?—commented.

"It's the best thing I've tasted in a while," Daniel admitted. "May I have some more?"

Aldis smiled and dished up more of the stew. "Of course. I'm just curious, but did they give you anything to drink before that ceremony this morning?"

Daniel shuddered. "That ceremonial stuff? Oh, don't remind me. It was awful!"

"They made you drink it all, didn't they?" Aldis asked.

Daniel looked carefully at his host, wondering what he was getting at. "They insisted that I do just that. Do you know why?"

Aldis handed him back his plate. "Sounds like they gave you _matteliri_."

Daniel blinked. That was a word he hadn't heard before. "What's that?"

Maleth winced. "It's a drug that makes you fuzzy-headed and compliant. A side effect is that it makes you very hungry. It sounds to me like they didn't want you panicking at the last moment and ruining the ceremony."

Daniel fought down the urge to start cursing. "I wasn't going to do that! I'd agreed to do what they told me to do—they gave me no other choice! Why would they--!" He stopped, too outraged to continue.

"No way of knowing, lad," Aldis said, pouring him a cup of something hot to drink. "Finish your food and drink this down, then go to sleep. You'll feel better in the morning, I promise."

Whether it was the remains of the matteliri in his bloodstream or just being tired and fed up, Daniel couldn't tell. He ate his second helping, drank what was in the cup, and stretched out on the ground. Before he fell asleep he felt someone wrap a blanket around him, and then he was dead to the world.

* * *

"Time to wake up, lad."

Daniel forced his eyes open and fought down a groan.

"Breakfast is ready," Rithan said.

Suddenly, it didn't seem so hard to wake up. Slowly, he pulled himself to a sitting position, thanked the person handing him a plate, and ate. It looked like he had a couple of nut, fruit, and grain bars as well as a generous serving of last night's stew. "Should I still be hungry?" he asked after swallowing his first mouthful.

"That'll last at least until tomorrow," Aldis said. "How's the head?"

"It's...oh, it's much better," Daniel said in relief. "Thank goodness."

Breakfast didn't take long and Daniel was given the job of rubbing the plates, cutlery, and pot with sand to clean them while his three guards broke camp. Once Rithan declared it was time to go Daniel got to his feet but immediately fell right down again, hissing with pain.

"What happened?" Maleth asked, surprised.

"My feet!" Daniel couldn't believe how much they hurt. He'd been planning on slipping away some time that day, but with feet that painful, he didn't think it was possible. They'd ached before he'd stood up, but he'd figured that that had been due solely to having to walk a lot the day before.

"Here, hold still," Aldis said, reaching for Daniel's right boot. "Let me take a look."

Aldis yanked the boot off, making Daniel blanch and whatever color was left in Daniel's face quickly left it as he saw the bloody mockery of a foot emerge from the boot. The left foot was similar and Daniel winced as the older man pulled off the socks he was wearing, cursing when he saw that they were stiff with blood.

"How was he walking with feet like that?" Rithan demanded.

"It was probably the matteliri," Aldis told him, opening up his pack and rooting around inside it. "It deadens the ability to feel pain from injuries in your extremities. That's probably why he didn't feel it until he stood up. Looks like a very, very bad case of blisters due to boots that weren't made to be walked in. Most of the top layer of skin on his feet has been rubbed away by those boots. Rithan, try to break that leather in for us and Maleth, you help me."

Quite a few painful minutes followed as Maleth and Aldis began to work on Daniel's feet. Blood and dead skin were washed away carefully and ointment--quite a deal of it--was applied to every inch of his feet and ankles. Having bandages wrapped around his feet felt so wonderful that Daniel had to fight down a sigh of bliss.

"Does that feel better?" Aldis asked.

"It feels wonderful," Daniel said honestly. He caught sight of what Rithan was doing and had to stare for a moment. "What--what is he doing?"

"Breaking in the leather," Maleth said calmly as Rithan pounded away at Daniel's boots with a rock the size of a softball. "They won't be so sturdy, but they'll be easier on your feet. Plus, they'll be stretched out a little, allowing you to wear bandages and socks. You'll need both."

"I wish we had an extra pair of boots," Aldis said, fishing out a pair of socks from his pack. "Still, we'll have to make do with what we have. Try these on for size, lad."

"Daniel," Daniel said, taking the socks he was handed. "My name is Daniel."

Aldis smiled. "Good to know, Daniel. Try those on."

With the layers of bandages on his feet, the socks fit fine, and shortly Rithan brought over Daniel's boots, pounded to a fare-thee-well. How he'd made them stretch out and soften wasn't something Daniel could really understand (off-world leather could do amazing things), but he was thankful that pulling them on didn't really hurt.

"Let's see how well you can walk," Aldis ordered, tucking things away in his pack.

Carefully, Daniel got to his feet and walked a few steps. There was some discomfort and his feet were tender, but he could walk.

"Great! Let's go," Rithan grinned.

"Um, I'm pretty sure you guys don't have to kidnap me," Daniel said. "There has to be another way to take care of whatever your concerns are."

"We wish we didn't have to kidnap you," Maleth said quietly. "But you're necessary, Daniel. You have to come with us. Please don't make this any harder for yourself than it has to be."

Hearing the unspoken threat that they would make sure he went with them by whatever means it took, Daniel decided not to mention it again. He didn't doubt that Jack and his friends were already looking for him.

* * *

"Don't make me say it again, colonel," Janet said firmly, eyeing her patient with barely controlled fury. "You'll stay in that bed until I say otherwise. People are looking for Daniel."

"I can't argue with that," Jack said. "I know people are looking for Daniel. I know that people from the University are looking and our own teams are looking. I know that Teal'c is scouring the hillsides looking for him. What I'm not happy about is the fact that I'm lying in bed while they're looking for him!"

"You'll be in that bed for a while yet," Janet informed him. "Or have you forgotten that you have a fever from infection?"

Jack swore under his breath. "No, I haven't forgotten. The fever makes me feel rotten, but I've worked with a fever before, so--"

"Colonel, don't make me send you home," Janet threatened. "If you keep this up, I'll do it. I'll tell General Hammond to confine you to the base infirmary and that will be an end of it, understand?"

Seeing that she was deadly serious, Jack nodded. "All right, doc."

"Good," Janet said. "I'll hold you to this, all right, colonel?"

"Got ya," Jack said calmly. "Heard anything from the search teams?"

Janet sighed. "Nothing yet. We're still waiting."

Jack sighed. They'd been waiting a couple of eternities--really boring eternities, too--and they'd heard nothing.

"Some news will come in sometime, sir," Janet promised. "We just have to be patient."

Neither of them had to admit that neither of them were very patient at the moment.

* * *

Several times that day Aldis, Rithan, and Maleth had Daniel stop and remove his boots and socks so his bandages could be changed. The third time this happened Daniel noticed that his feet were looking somewhat better. They certainly didn't hurt as much as they had, which was all to the good, in his opinion. His stumbling and tripping every hour didn't help much, but he had to leave some sign for his friends to follow. Teal'c was an incredible tracker, but Daniel figured he would be found faster if he made the job as easy as possible.

That night they untied his hands, rubbed ointment on his wrists, and tied them again. They also tied his feet.

"That isn't necessary," Daniel said, a bit annoyed at this. "Where am I going to go?"

"Like we said before, this is just a precaution," Rithan said. "Go to sleep now."

Daniel sighed. He guessed they'd noticed that his feet were no longer troubling him so much and they'd decided to take no chances.

The next day followed the same pattern and by the time they stopped for the night he was exhausted. They'd released his feet, the pace had picked up, and Daniel was more than glad to stop. His feet and legs ached, he was all over sweat and dust and all he wanted to do was fall to the ground and sleep for a hundred years.

"Hungry?" Aldis asked, seeing Daniel slump onto a nearby rock.

"No," Daniel said flatly. "Tired."

"Well, you can go right to sleep after we eat something," Aldis told him. "You look tired."

"Mmm."

Daniel ate what he was given and stretched out on the ground when he was told to, snuggling happily under the blanket they provided. Maybe with some sleep under his belt he would feel more like himself. He fell asleep without a problem and slept all through the night, enjoying the feeling of being prone and unmoving. He didn't move until he absolutely had to, when he heard Aldis shout the next morning.

"Morning, Aldis," a strange voice said. "You have him, then?"

"I do indeed, Maran," Aldis said as Daniel sat up. "He's just waking up."

Daniel looked up and saw two men on horseback, and behind them was a string of four horses, all tacked up and ready to go.

"We'll give those feet of yours a break and let them ride, Daniel," Aldis said chummily. "Time to get up and get going."

Horses. Dear God, how much further were they planning on taking him? More importantly, would they take him so far that he wouldn't be found?


	21. Chapter 21

Chapter 21

Sam slipped inside the bivouac hospital, shaking off a feeling of disgust as she did so. She'd just spent the last few hours doing something highly distasteful and she was more than glad that it was over for the day. She only hoped what she'd learned would prove useful.

"Carter!" the colonel said as she approached his bed. "Where the heck have you been?"

"Doing a little clandestine work, sir," she said honestly. "Has Teal'c reported in?"

"Twenty minutes ago. He and SG-8 have found traces of a group of men headed into the hills outside of the University. They're tracking them now."

"Sounds promising."

"Carter?"

She looked at him and fought down a wince. Oooh, he looked mad.

"I wanted to send you with them," O'Neill said quietly. "Why the hell weren't you here?"

"Sir, I apologize. I-"

"Don't waste time apologizing; just tell me where you were!"

Sam took a deep breath. "I was visiting Lyssa and the Rulers."

Jack's expression darkened and his eyebrows shot up towards his hairline. "Why?"

"I was trying to figure out what they knew."

Jack tiltled his head to the side and considered this. "Come again?"

"Well, sir, I've been kind of observing things undercover while we've been here," Sam said in a rush. "The people on this planet may consider me a Wise One, but in case you haven't noticed, men scholars outnumber women scholars by three to one and few of those women are thought to be very good scholars. I figured that I didn't need to disabuse people of their preconceptions about me since I could learn more about this place if I let those misconceptions stand. I can tell that people in the palace think I'm an empty-headed woman because I've been acting like one lately. Everyone I've spoken to in the palace tends to let down their guard around me since I've been cultivating that impression and I think I've learned quite a few things about the true state of this place."

Jack blinked and made a mental note of Sam's subterfuge and its effectiveness. Even _he'd_ been fooled! "You've been acting a little ditzy, I'll grant you, but I thought that was because you were trying to unwind a little!" Of all things he had expected, this hadn't been one of them! He hadn't thought that all the gushing about clothes and jewelry actually hid something important!

Sam smiled. "'Ditzy' is what I was going for. If people think you're a ditz, then you're not someone they need to worry about."

Jack felt a smile starting. "So, Carter, what have you learned?"

Now Sam hesitated. "You might want to sit down, sir."

Jack stood up straight and looked her in the eye. "It's bad, isn't it?"

"Not bad, just disturbing," Sam said.

"How so?"

"Nothing is what we thought," Sam told him, being certain to keep her voice low. "The entire society is practically a sham. The University isn't the only settled place on the planet and a better name for the Rulers would be 'Despots.' Everything, and I mean _everything_, is under their control. The people who live outside of the University have a barely sustainable quality of life and they're actively engaged in trying to overthrow the Rulers when they aren't fending off their attacks. People who live inside the University are under strict control-the Rulers can even decide who a person marries due to certain bloodlines they want to keep 'pure.'"

At last Jack sat down. Things were starting to fall into place in his head. "Don't tell me-One of the bloodlines they want to keep pure is their own, right? And Daniel was perfect for it?"

"Yes, sir. Looks like Earth isn't the only place to develop the pseudoscience of eugenics, sir."

Jack buried his face in his hands. "Now I think we can safely say who was behind the blast and why Daniel was taken. These people outside the University now have a hostage."

"There's more, sir," Sam said quietly, wishing she could spare him this.

He stared at her. "_More_?"

"Yes, sir. It's about Daniel's virus."

Space

For the next few days Daniel's world shrank to riding, sleeping on the ground, and pain. His entire body still ached from the blast, his feet hurt from being in the stirrups, and his legs and rump hurt from riding. He could ride, yes, but it had been ages since he'd last ridden and his legs knew it. At the end of his first day of riding he wanted to lie down and die, but that would just piss off Jack and he had enough worries.

"How are you feeling?" Aldis asked that night as they dismounted and began to set up camp.

"I hurt," Daniel said shortly. "When are you going to tell me what's going on?"

"When we get to where we're going."

"And when will that be?"

"A few days, maybe less, maybe more."

"Oh, yippee."

"Joyful little thing, isn't he?" Maran said. Maran and his brother, Jarlin, were the two men who had brought the horses and Daniel had a strong feeling they were related in some way to Aldis. There was a bit of resemblance in their faces and the two of them usually deferred to Aldis, which spoke of an old familiarity among the three of them. Maran was the more talkative of the two and loved to comment on Daniel's mood. Jarlin, in contrast, rarely spoke.

"Don't tease him," Aldis chided him. "Let's get dinner."

Daniel ate what he was given and settled down in a blanket when told to. For the first time since this whole nightmarish adventure began he was sleepless. From what Aldis and his friends had told him, there had been a blast that destroyed the whole chapel. His friends had been in there, but Maleth assured him that no one had died. Most of the royal family had been injured, though. Strangely enough, Daniel couldn't find much room in his heart to worry about that, aside from Lyssa, and even then she took a sudden backseat to thoughts of his friends. Were they all right? Were their injuries bad?

"Don't worry," Aldis told him when he asked. "Out of everyone, their injuries were the least severe."

Sweet relief flood through him at those words. Knowing his friends, they were all right by this point and probably making life hell for anyone assigned to nurse them. Also, that told him something interesting: Aldis knew who his friends were. Hmmm.

That night over dinner Daniel worked up the courage to talk to Aldis (the de facto leader of this little band of kidnappers) about where they were going and what would happen once they were there.

"Can you tell me a little bit about the place we're going?"

Maran gave him a long look. "You're awfully full of questions, Daniel."

Daniel ignored the jibe. "I just want to know what to expect."

Aldis gave him a kind but sad smile. "I probably won't be able to tell you until we're almost there. How much do you know about the AHROSH?"

Daniel blinked, not understanding. "What do they have to do with this?"

"They haven't been talking to you, have they?"

Realization hit him. This was important, but he just couldn't understand why. "No. They haven't spoken to me at all since I woke up." He looked at Aldis, thinking hard. "Why?"

"The Rulers are most likely still unconscious," Aldis said. "They control the AHROSH directly."

Daniel went cold, an odd sort of buzzing started in his ears and suddenly, he couldn't see anything. The next thing he knew he was being supported by someone and something was burning its way slowly down his throat. He coughed, his eyes watering. What the heck had they given him?

"That'll teach me to drop a big load of news on your head like that," Aldis was saying, putting away a metal flask. "Are you all right?"

Dumbly, Daniel nodded and sat up on his own, thankfully taking the water Rithan handed him. "They control them directly?" he asked once he had control of his voice. "So, the AHROSH talking to me and making my body do things…That was Lyssa's _parents_?"

"The best-kept secret in the world," Maran said dryly. "The Rulers have a specific gene that allows them to process disparate information from each and every AHROSH unit. The AHROSH are designed to mimic a virus and most people think the so-called virus is native to the planet and there's nothing they can do about it. It allows the Rulers to keep a watch over every person at all times."

Daniel fought down a wave of nausea. It all made a great deal of sense. "That's why you won't tell me anything about where you're taking me yet. What I know, then the AHROSH will know, too. I take it they still take in information even while the Rulers are unconscious, right?"

Aldis nodded. "You're right. The reach of the AHROSH diminishes over distance and once you go so far, the Rulers' control all but disappears. They'll be able to get a vague sense of you, mostly how you are physically, but they won't be able to make you do or say anything and they won't be able to get any concrete information. That's another reason why we've been moving so fast. We're trying to get you out of their reach so that their link through the AHROSH won't be able to force you to do anything, like go back to them."

Slowly, Daniel digested this and nodded. "I see." He felt absolutely _sick_. Not only had the Rulers forced him to do and say things against his will, but they'd been in his mind! Even worse, they'd forced him to do and say things when he'd been with Lyssa! They'd been doing this to their own daughter! They'd been in his head and they knew everything! Whatever thoughts he'd had, they knew them! With a mental shake, Daniel forced himself back to the issue at hand. He needed to learn as much as he could while Aldis was in such a communicative mood. Every bit of information was precious. "Can you tell me why the AHROSH make people become comatose when they leave the planet?"

"Since they couldn't stop people from going to other planets, The Rulers added a fail-safe into the AHROSH programming. Whenever someone with the AHROSH goes through the Gate, the fail-safe clicks on and the effects get worse as long as the person is away from the planet. Once that person returns, then he is fine."

Daniel nodded. As much as he wished he could call Aldis a liar, he knew the man was telling the truth. He'd seen enough around the universe to know that unethical people who had power would do anything to keep it, even if it involved hurting others. As much as he wished others could be as concerned for the good of people as he was, he knew that it wasn't always possible. To his regret, people hurt others for the sake of power all too often.

"Once we get to where we're going, we'll settle you in and explain what's expected of you," Aldis promised him. "We can swear to you that you won't be harmed or mistreated or locked up. Understand?"

Daniel nodded. "I understand, thank you."

They let him alone then, and Daniel was certain they realized he needed to think about everything he'd learned. The only times they interrupted him was to give him his supper and to take his empty plate when he was finished. He didn't really feel like eating, but Aldis said that the hunger caused by matteliri could linger, and it was evident that that was the case with Daniel as he practically demolished the food in front of him. Shortly after the meal ended Aldis insisted that Daniel lie down and try to rest.

"You've had a bit of a shock and shocks can exhaust you," Aldis said by way of an explanation. "It's best if you get some rest."

Daniel didn't say anything and curled up in his blanket. He could hear Aldis and his companions talking around the campfire and usually their quiet talk helped lull him to sleep, but tonight it wasn't working. He shifted around a few times before laying on his back and looking up at the stars. Although he was used to seeing new and strange constellation patterns due to his frequent travels through the Gate, seeing them tonight only emphasized how far from home and his friends he was.

"Lad? Daniel?" It was Aldis, crouching beside him and looking at him with concern. "Ah, lad, I'm sorry."

"It's all right," Daniel said quickly. "I'm just tired."

"Do you always cry when you're tired?"

"I'm _fine_," Daniel insisted. The absolute last thing he wanted to do right now was talk about anything.

"All right," Aldis said, perhaps sensing that Daniel was in no mood to talk. "Try to go to sleep."

Space

Jack stormed into the Rulers' hospital room, determined on getting the truth out of them. He believed Carter when she said that Daniel's virus was really a form of nanotechnology designed to help the Rulers control the population, but he wanted as much information as possible on the people who now had Daniel. He knew for certain that Daniel wouldn't do anything stupid while he was in their hands, but that didn't guarantee that he was safe. These people were an entirely unknown factor in his book, impossible to predict or control. If anything happened to Daniel, then those Rulers' days would be numbered and the number would be very, very small.

"Hello, Stane, Mara," Jack said as politely as he could. "How's things?"

Both of them stared at him. "Colonel? What does this mean? You couldn't even wait to be announced?"

"No, what I have to discuss with you is pretty urgent," Jack told them calmly. "It concerns Daniel."

"We've been told that the head of our security already has search parties out looking for him," Stane said. Of the pair of them, Stane's injuries looked worse since bruises and gashes covered most of his face. Jack hoped so much they would scar, even if the medical facilities of this planet could remove them later. Any inconvenience for the Rulers, however small, made him a happier man.

"We also have our own search parties out," Jack told him. "What I'm here to talk to you about is Daniel's virus and how it isn't a virus."

Again, they stared. "Colonel?"

"You can drop the innocent act," Jack snapped. "We know what the virus really is. We know that you've been using it to control the people of the University and we know that your society is fake. How many people have been marginalized and made into second-class citizens because they don't fit into what you think is proper? What, their bloodlines weren't good enough or something? They didn't do what you told them to without questioning you? What was it?" He knew he was stepping on some major political toes, but it had to be said. That statement was only winding up for the pitch. "Those same people are the ones who set that blast in the chapel and they're the ones who've kidnapped one of the most important archeological minds of our world!" Sam had told him that they would respond better if he emphasized Daniel's importance as a scholar so that was what he was doing.

Mara looked like a beached fish and Stane was beginning to stutter. "Colonel-I-I-"

"You two had better have a good explanation for all of this. A very, very _good_ explanation."

The silence that followed seemed frozen and Jack knew that he had gained the upper hand. Let them wiggle their way out of this. He was ready.

Space

"Thanks be," Aldis said a day and a half after his big bombshell. "We're there. See that smoke, Daniel? That's where we're going."

Daniel looked, wishing his glasses hadn't been broken. "What is that?"

"That's our village," Aldis explained. "It's a good size, as you can see."

Daniel wished for an optician. He missed his glasses.

"A few more hours of riding and we'll be there."

Daniel couldn't blame them all for being happy at getting home; he just wished he wasn't with them. Since Aldis had made the nature of the virus clear he'd been depressed and he knew it, but it was hard to drum up enough energy to really care about the direction his mood had taken. He let his mind wander while his horse stayed in line behind Aldis's. He wasn't really thinking about anything in particular when he began to feel very...odd. Very, very odd. There was something wrong with him. "Aldis-"

Before he could say anything else he was off his horse and pelting back the way they'd come, spooking the horses and startling their riders. He didn't know how far he'd run before he heard hoofbeats behind him. There was impact and he was facedown in the dirt, struggling to get away and he didn't know why.

"Looks like the Rulers are awake at last and trying as hard as they can to get you back," he heard Aldis grunt as the older man wrestled with him. "For the sake of the stars, Rithan, give me some rope and something to use as a blindfold!"

Within five minutes Daniel was tied and blindfolded, still struggling, but he wasn't about to go anywhere.

"Amazing they could reach this far," Maleth said. "Do you think they were both concentrating on him?"

"That's the only explanation I can think of," Aldis said wearily. "Daniel, we know that this attempt wasn't you. We know that the Rulers are the ones who forced you to do it, so it's all right. Once we get to where we're going, we're going to hand you over to our healers. They can stop this virus and keep the Rulers from tormenting you with it, all right?"

_'Tormenting' is a pretty accurate description for this,_ Daniel thought as his body fought against the ropes holding him. All of his muscles ached and burned so much that he wanted to scream. Dearest God, he _hurt_.

"Aldis, he has to be in pain," Jarlin said quietly. "It isn't easy to fight the AHROSh in any way and when you're actually unable to do what the AHROSH demands, then the pain gets even worse."

"I know, Jarlin," Aldis said just as quietly. "Get me my pack."

A bitter, acidic mouthful of liquid made its way past his lips and burned its way down his throat. He gagged at the taste and coughed. "What was that?" he rasped around the burning in his throat. His entire mouth tasted as if he'd just chewed a bottle full of aspirin!

"Something to kill pain," Aldis said. "It'll also make you extremely fuzzy-headed, which is all to the good in this situation. If you can, try to sleep. We'll be there soon."

Daniel didn't sleep, but he did doze. He had vague memories of being placed back on his horse and being belted into the saddle and riding what felt like a long way. Then, suddenly, his blindfold was gone and he was surrounded by buildings in the middle of a village somewhere. People were coming out of the houses and they were all talking at once.

"Demne!" Daniel heard Aldis shout. "Demne!"

"Here I am, Aldis! I have to tell you, it's very good to see you! We'd all thought that you'd been caught!"

"We're fine," Aldis assured him. "Unfortunately, this young man isn't. He's been given the AHROSH and we're keeping him from obeying the compulsion. I gave him some _thalat_ when we first came into sight of the village-"

"You dangerous madman!"

"But I don't know how long it will last."

Hands helped Daniel down from his horse and supported him while fingers opened his eyes wide and a light was shone in them. "Aldis, you've made this poor lad fly higher than the birds themselves! Remind me to kill you later. Maleth, help me get him inside and settled. Hopefully the effects won't last too long."

Daniel didn't really take in anything else he heard and shortly after that he was lying down in a bed that was blissfully still. It was quiet, he was comfortable, and it wasn't long before sleep took him and carried him beyond the reach of the AHROSH.


End file.
